Bahrain’s Mixed Fortunes on Busy Day at Youth Games

TDT | Manama

Email : hussainm@newsofbahrain.com

At Exhibition World Bahrain, the spotlight belonged to the teqball women. Rawan Abdulaziz and Fatima Al Banna opened with a straight-sets win over the Philippines (2–0) before holding their nerve to defeat India 2–1 in a tense deciding match. The pair, both still in their teens, could hardly hide their emotion after sealing the win. “Alhamdulilah, I have no words to express how I feel right now,” said Abdulaziz.

“I am very happy and proud to represent my country. This is an achievement for my family, for Captain Basil, Captain Abdulrahman, Captain Mohammad Ghanem, Captain Ahmed and Fawaz — all those who worked hard for us and trained us. They gave us hope.”

She spoke of the nerves that came with representing Bahrain on home soil. “We faced many difficulties, but we kept talking to each other and encouraged each other. We learned how to calm down the situation. Alhamdulilah, we won the match. We are very optimistic. This win is for the Kingdom of Bahrain and His Majesty King Hamad.” Her teammate, Fatima Al Banna, recalled the crucial final moments of their win. “The most difficult moment was when we played against India. It was the third shot — we were both very nervous, but Alhamdulilah, we won the last point.” Both players dedicated their success to their coaches and supporters. “We will do our duty, InshaAllah,” they added. “Alhamdulilah, we worked very hard and trained a lot.”

While the women celebrated, the men’s teqball pair Hussein Isa and Ali Hasan endured a challenging afternoon. Facing a tough draw, they lost in straight sets to the Philippines, Thailand, India, and Cambodia, including a 0–2 defeat to the Philippines, a 0–2 loss to Thailand, a 0–2 loss to India, and a 0–2 setback against Cambodia.

Battles on the Beach

From the indoor courts, the focus shifted to the shoreline at Sama Bay, where Bahrain’s beach volleyball teams faced some of Asia’s best. The men’s duo Karrar Yaqoob and Hussain Al Warqaa opened against Thailand’s Kittiwat Suwansirirat and Boonyarit Maneewan, losing 17–21, 13–21. Later, they pushed Mongolia hard in a four-set contest, eventually going down 1–3 (25–20, 17–25, 25–23, 25–20) after 98 minutes. Their statistics told the story of determination — 44 successful spikes, 16 blocks, and three service aces — numbers that reflected both promise and fatigue.

The women’s duo, Layan Majeed and Maya Falah, also faced an uphill battle against regional heavyweights. Losses included defeats to Jordan (0–2), Thailand (1–2), and Qatar (0–3, 25–8, 25–6, 25–13) at Isa Sports City – Hall B, where their opponents’ serving proved decisive.

Regional Rivals Impress

Elsewhere, the day brought mixed fortunes for Gulf neighbours. In volleyball, Saudi Arabia’s boys edged Uzbekistan 3–2 in a five-set thriller, while Indonesia defeated Chinese Taipei 3–1 in the girls’ preliminary round. Qatar were swept 0–3 by Iran in the boys’ preliminary round, and Jordan fell 0–3 to China in the girls’ pool B match. Bahrain’s volleyball teams struggled, with the girls going down 0–3 to Qatar and the boys losing 1–3 to Mongolia.

In handball, Kuwait overpowered Thailand 43–15, UAE beat Kazakhstan 35–27, and Iran defeated China 20–17 in boys’ competition. In girls’ matches, Iran beat Uzbekistan 27–24, India lost to Kazakhstan 26–39, and China thrashed Thailand 33–15.

Bahrain’s boys were handed a harsh 17–92 defeat — the day’s widest winning margin — while Iran’s girls defeated Thailand 61–35. Other notable kabaddi results included Sri Lanka edging Thailand 50–49, Sri Lanka defeating Pakistan 55–36, and Thailand overcoming Bangladesh 49–42. India also beat Iran 46–29 in boys’ team action.