HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam are all set to take part in the Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship in Surabaya, Indonesia, which begins Monday and will continue till August 1.

The Southeast Asian team are in Pool C along with Japan, South Korea and Sri Lanka.

In the first match, Việt Nam will face South Korea.

Coach Phùng Công Hưng takes with him familiar faces who have been senior players of the national team for several years now, such as Giang Văn Đức, Hoàng Văn Phương, Từ Thanh Thuận and Ngô Văn Kiều.

He has also saved spots for youngsters such as Hoài Hận and Thành Hạc, who are expected to be key players for Việt Nam in the future.

Twelve other teams are participating in the three pools of the biennial top-tier tournament.

The top two teams from each pool will advance to the quarter-finals. Teams that finish at third and fourth places in each pool will be relegated to between the ninth and 16th classification rounds.

In Pool C, Japan, who have won a berth at next year’s FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship in Italy and Bulgaria, are the top candidate for a slot in the next round. The defending champions have won the tournament eight times.

In Pool B, former two-time winners and world No 7 Iran are expected to dominate.

Australia and China, bronze medallists at the previous Asian meet, are the other top teams.

In Pool A, hosts Indonesia have the advantage of strong support from local fans.

In its previous edition in Tehran two years ago, Japan shattered Iran’s dreams of winning three titles in a row by beating them 3-1, and claimed their eighth Asian title. — VNS