FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers: India’s Spirited Effort Falls Short Against Iran 53-86
FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers 2025: Against Iran, who is rated 27th, in Group E of the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in New Delhi, India showed resiliency.
The 81st-ranked Indian squad lost 53-86 to a physically superior Iranian team, despite a great effort.
India lost their Group E match of the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in New Delhi on Monday, despite putting on a great display against 27th-ranked Iran, 53-86. With forward Pranav Prince making perfect interceptions, the 81st-ranked Indian team got off to an excellent start, leading by two points in the opening minute. The Iranian players were slow to settle into a rhythm, but once they did, they exploited their greater strength to breach the Indian defense.
Even though they were behind by just three points at the end of the first quarter, India was still able to stay in the game. India attempted to stop the visitors’ quick runs, blocking more than 40% of their two-point attempts. However, they had trouble grabbing rebounds and were behind 32–42 at the half.
Prince led India in scoring with 11 points, followed by Arvind Kumar Muthu Krishnan and Muin Bek Hafeez, who both scored nine points. Benham Yakhchali scored 15 points for Iran, while Mohammad Amini and Salar Monji each scored 14.
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Veselin Matic, the head coach of India, stated, “We need more experience, but we have talent.” Before the next qualifier in November, we have some time off, and the national team will be taking part in club championships as well as numerous other exposure tours. We are sure we can deliver a memorable performance.” India is presently bottom of the group standings after losing their debut match 50-63 to Kazakhstan.
India‘s next chance to reverse their current situation is when they play Qatar in November.
The qualifying rounds are expected to continue till February 2025. The teams who rank third in each group advance to the final qualifying round, while the top two teams from the six groups advance to the main competition in Saudi Arabia the following year.
