“This feeling is out of this world; we’ve achieved this without the same facilities and resources that are available to the countries we were playing against. It is a huge moment for us in this given situation,” Pakistan team captain Murad Jehan expressed his excitement right after his team won the 2026 Asian Games Volleyball bronze medal in Japan.
It has been a stunning show of resilience, balance, and optimism, essential for creating historic moments. The Pakistan volleyball team brought the medal home after 64 years, as the last time Pakistan’s volleyball team had a podium finish, a bronze was in the 1962 Games in Jakarta.
They defeated a stronger team like China, who are ranked 34th in the world, 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-18) in straight sets with a dominant performance in the third-place match at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Gymnasium.
“It was always our dream to win medals, to dominate,” Murad told Lost on the Desk after their match against China, as they were waiting for the final between Japan and Iran.
“This was always our plan, to first be the best among South Asian countries, then Asia, and then the world.
“Even today, it is a huge feat, and 64 years is a huge gap, but we are excited about this because the way we prepare is different from the countries that we play against.
“There are far more facilities and resources given to them, while we are getting these results with far less.
“If you look at our situation, it is a great performance.
“I am hoping that the leaders, the people in the government, the officials take note of this performance and make sure they invest appropriate resources in volleyball, to have a professional, official league that can be run throughout the year.
“It’s a sign for them that volleyball is the game to put money in.”
Pakistan’s performance at the Asian Games in Japan has been stunning, with their only losses against teams seeded higher than them, like defending champions Iran 3-0 (13-25, 15-25, 11-25) in the semifinal, and Asian number one team Japan 3-0 (29-27, 25-20, 25-22) in their last Pool A match.
But the rest of the campaign was hearty, hard-fought, and deft, to the point where even Japanese fans were cheering for them.
They won against Uzbekistan 3-0, Kazakhstan 3-0 to finish second in the group, and then defeated India 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-18) in the quarterfinal to face Iran in the semifinal.
Murad pointed out that the recent successes in volleyball, including their winning the CAVA Championship title earlier this year, are a sign that volleyball is a strong contender among sports that the Pakistan nation can get behind and pin its hopes on.
“If you look at our performance, you can see that the volleyball team has been the most consistent in delivering results on the international stage among other sports from Pakistan,” he said, as he sent this message to the nation.
“Every nation needs a sport behind which they can put their hopes and emotions, and a sport that can become central to our identity. I think volleyball is that sport; we are showing Pakistan that this sport can represent us and our spirit.
“I am sure if they watch us play, they would love us; they would want to be a part of our success and growth,” said Murad.
Murad, who plays as the outside hitter, has been a leader on and off the pitch, and his priority is always the Pakistan team.
“I have been the captain of the team for the last seven tournaments, and we’ve won them consistently, so my relationship with this team is great and every success we get is always a collective effort,” said Murad.
He also highlighted that the team plays well mostly because the players respect one another, and also because each one comes in with a special set of skills.
“Our team is like a family; we come together as one unit, and we all put Pakistan first. Most of the players are coming with great experience, which they gain from their participation in leagues abroad, and they each have exceptional leadership skills in their respective positions; they know how to handle their nerves in high-pressure games, and overall it benefits our performances greatly,” explained Murad.
He also added that despite limited resources, the team is successful because of the good decisions made by the Pakistan Volleyball Federation.
“I feel we need to give credit to the federation, because despite the limitations, they get us good coaches and scouts; it is a commendable effort by them,” said Murad.
When complimented on his own performance, he was quick to point out that individual performance is not important and that it is always a collective success.
“Team performance matters before individual performance, “ said Murad.
Similarly, the Pakistani team has most of its players coming from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but Murad strictly believes that it is a Pakistan team first, and where any player comes from locally is irrelevant when they are together as a team and when they are competing at the events.
“We are a Pakistani team, first and foremost; the rest does not matter,” he added. “It is a positive trend that volleyball is so popular in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but it doesn’t matter who is coming from where when we play as a team, in the camp or in the locker room.”
No one could be more proud of the team than Murad, except for the team leader and Manager, Naseer Ahmed, who is also the Director Technical for the Pakistan Volleyball Federation.
The former captain for the team was beaming with pride and joy, and his excitement was through the roof while speaking to Lost on the Desk.
Murad added that the former captain was one of the biggest cheerleaders for the team.
“You asked me about the motivation; I feel Naseer bhai was such a motivator. I have played with Naseer bhai; he was the captain when I was playing, and today, while he was at the court side, it felt like he was one of us out there. He was cheering us on, and this kind of moral support really helps,” said Murad.
Meanwhile, Naseer, who has the record of having one of the longest careers in Pakistan volleyball of 15 years and serving 10 as captain, said this achievement was no mean feat.
He was most impressed by the team’s ability to make a comeback in the tournament after a devastating loss against Iran in the semifinal.
The bottom line was that Pakistan did not play like underdogs despite a tough loss.
“We are so excited, and it is such a unique high to be experiencing this,” said Naseer.
“I think our boys deserve this glory, especially for showing resilience and strength of mind to defeat a team like China, which is stronger than ours on paper.
“The most impressive part was that they held on to their belief and got their act together in this third-place match. They had a hard look at their performance against Iran in the semifinal. Of course, Iran is a far stronger side; they have more financial backing and they are better than us talent-wise, but our team understood that they should’ve performed better and should’ve pushed harder.
“Today they were a different band of boys; they fought hard, they looked confident, and they went into the match to win it, without making mistakes that could cost them this medal.
“As a federation official and their manager, I can say that we are very satisfied with the team’s performance.”
Pakistan were coached by Spain’s Luis Alberto Toribio, who joined the Pakistan side a few months ago.
Naseer believes his efforts and strategies made a huge mark on the team.
“He is Spanish, but his heart is Pakistani!” Naseer exclaimed. “In such a short period, his passion, his expertise, and hard work have made a huge difference for the team; it is evident.
“He is so excited and emotional with us right now. He is one of us. He has made this history with us.”
Japan, as hosts, were top-seeded, while Iran, Qatar, South Korea, China, India, and Indonesia were seeded above Pakistan.
Previously,Pakistan’s best performance after 1962 was them finishing fifth in the 2022 edition of the Games.
Favourite performances
Naseer picked Pakistan’s games against India and China as his favourites.
“I think these two matches were so incredible from where I was watching them; they played high-quality volleyball, they were confident, and they played beautifully together. Somehow they brought out their best abilities in these matches to beat opponents that were predicted to win against them,” said Naseer.
Pakistan went on to take the podium at the closing ceremony after the final, which Iran won against Japan 3-1.
On the other hand, the Pakistan hockey team also grabbed a bronze medal after defeating South Korea 5-3 in a thriller; the Pakistan men’s cricket team lost to India in the final.
Pakistan’s 2024 Asian Games medal count
Overall, Pakistan’s medal count is 10 so far.
Two silver medals, by the men’s squash team and cricket team.
Eight bronze medals from MMA, women’s cricket team, squash singles (2), esports, shooting, hockey, and volleyball.
This is a far better performance from Pakistan, as they concluded the last edition in 2022 with only three medals - one silver and two bronze.
-Fin-