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TEHRAN, Dec. 01 (MNA) – Iran basketball team sporting director Masoud Ghasemi said that men’s national team will participate in the third window of FIBA Asia qualifiers with more readiness.
After gaining a victory over Saudi Arabia, Iran conceded a 77-70 defeat against Syria on Monday in the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in Qatar’s Doha.
Not engaging in competitions for some 10 months has led to a decrease in the performance of players and this blocked the team from obtaining goals, Ghasemi said on Tuesday.
Syria has never been a team to be underestimated, he said, adding that Syria had held a one-month training camp in Kazakhstan while Iran could not have even one friendly match.
Ghasemi also said that Iran has been partly ‘unlucky’ in the match against Syria.
He also voiced his objection over the appointment of Arab referees for matches of Iran with other Arab teams.
“We will participate in the third window with increased readiness and show the real position of Iran’s basketball in Asia,” he stressed.
In the third and final window of the competitions, Iran will take on Saudi Arabia and Qatar in mid-February 2021.
Only 16 out of 24 teams participating in the qualifiers will win quota to the 2021 Asia Cup. The top two teams of each group secure direct qualification while six third-placed teams will compete in a separate competition to win the remaining four places.
