Japan: The Indian men's volleyball team began its Asian volleyball championship 2021 campaign with a straight-sets loss to Bahrain in their first Group A match at the Chiba Port Arena, Japan on Sunday.
World No 84 India lost 3-0 (27-25, 25-21, 25-21) to Bahrain, ranked 87th in the world. The Indian team has to finish in the top two in their group to progress to the quarter-finals.
India face a daunting task next against world No 30 Qatar on Monday before taking on nine-time Asian champions Japan on Tuesday in their remaining two matches in Group A, according to Olympics.com.
India has appeared in all but three editions of the men's Asian volleyball championships since it began in 1975. They have the best finish of fourth in the 2005 edition.
A biennial event, the 2021 Asian Volleyball Championships also act as qualifiers for the 2022 FIVB World Championships - with the finalists gaining direct entry to the tournament.
The Indian volleyball team had finished eighth in the 2019 Asian Championships in Tehran, Iran.
