India beat New Zealand but wait on Oman – Bahrain to decide their fate at the Asian Championship

FUKUOKA, Japan – India claimed their first victory at the 2026 AVC Men's Volleyball Asian Championship by beating New Zealand 3-0 on August 11, but they still cannot celebrate. The 25-22, 25-18, 25-21 win only lifted them to third place in Pool B with a 1-2 record. According to Volleyball World, India must now wait for Wednesday's Pool A match between Oman and Bahrain. If Oman take a three-point win, they would leapfrog India. If Bahrain win 3-0, the two sides will be separated by point ratio. In every other scenario, India advance to the quarterfinals. Jerome Vinith Charles led all scorers with 19 points and two kill blocks. Chirag Yadav added 14 points with three aces and a block, while Amit Balwan Singh contributed 13 points and two blocks. New Zealand were eliminated after Seth Dylan Grant scored 15 points, supported by John McManaway with 13 and Mana Placid with 12. Japan earlier completed a perfect Pool A campaign by sweeping Australia 25-20, 25-13, 25-21 in front of about 6,500 fans at Kitakyushu City Gymnasium. Yuji Nishida top-scored with 16 points at an 82 percent attack success rate. Ran Takahashi added 13 points with five aces. Australia finished second in the pool with a 2-1 record. Korea wrapped up Pool C with a 25-20, 25-19, 25-15 win over Qatar, finishing with seven points. Mubarak Musa Thiik Madut scored 17 points for Qatar, while Korea's Jaeyoung Lim led his team with 15. The 2026 AVC Men's Championship serves as an Olympic qualifier for Los Angeles 2028 and a pathway to the 2027 FIVB Men's Volleyball World Cup.