Egypt capitalized on an Iran team missing star Amin Esmaeilnezhad, securing a 25-17, 16-25, 25-23, 25-20 victory to kick off its Pool A campaign in the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City on Sunday.
The win was a crucial boost for the World No.23 Egyptians, who claimed all three points against the higher-ranked No.13 Iranians, who were without reigning Asian Championship Best Opposite Spiker Esmaeilnezhad due to an ankle injury.
The triumph also sets the stage for their next matchup against host team Alas Pilipinas, who will be backed by a legion of supporters, on Tuesday at 5:30 PM at the same venue.
“Very great win because after losing the second set with a tough result, we stayed calm… Very great job. I’m so satisfied because this team started practicing at the end of May, and today was our first official match. I’m very proud of my team,” said Egypt head coach Marco Bonitta after the two-hour, eight-minute contest.
Looking ahead, Bonitta added, “It will be a very, very difficult match against the Philippines. They were a little nervous in the first and second sets against Tunisia, but they played very well starting the third set.
“I’m sure the level of the Philippine team will show from the first point, so it will be a very tough match.”
After dropping the second set decisively, the reigning African champions bounced back with strong resolve, opening a 20-14 lead in the third.
The Iranians fought back, narrowing the gap to 22-23.
Egypt regained control when Iran’s Bardia Saadat committed a costly net fault, and Ahmed Said Shafik closed out the set with a down-the-line spike over a three-man block.
“It was a very tough game from the first point to the last. Since we knew we were playing Iran, we focused on stopping their strongest points and exploiting their weaknesses,” said Abdelrahman Elhossiny, who contributed 17 points in the win.
Shafik led the Egyptians with 18 points, while Seifeldin Hassan Aly added 12.
Iran was paced by Ali Hajipour and Priya Hossein Khanzadeh with 17 and 12 points, respectively. The Iranians will also face 40th-ranked Tunisia on Tuesday.
#WATCH: Egypt’s Said and Seif Abed celebrate their upset win over Iran and aim to top Pool A! 🇪🇬🏐
📹 @seol_gongchan /Tiebreaker Times#MWCH2025 pic.twitter.com/Tb3olF78Vv
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) September 14, 2025
