KATHMANDU, Nov 28: Nepal national volleyball team is preparing to play two international friendlies against Hong Kong at the end of January.
The men’s teams of Nepal and Hong are going to play against each other after 34 years. They last faced each other in the 1983 Asian Men’s Volleyball Championship in Tokyo, Japan. The match will be played in Hong Kong.
Nepal Volleyball Association (NVA)’s general secretary Jitendra Bahadur Chand informed Republica that the teams will face each other after over three decades on the invitation of Volleyball Association of Hong Kong.
Chand said that Nepal will face Hong Kong on January 28 and 29. The national team will also play against Hong Kong-based Nepali players’ team on January 27.
The first match of the friendlies will be played at the Yuen Chau Kok Sports Center while the second at the Po Wing Road Sports Center.
Chand further informed that the Nepali team will be felicitated by the Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) chapter of Hong Kong.
“The Hong Kong tour is very important for Nepali volleyball and we are happy with the invitation. Nepalis who are in Hong Kong have organized a friendly match with love and respect for us. It will help boost the confidence of our players,” Chand said.
Chand added that the former Nepali players Jaya Narayan Chaudhary and Niranjan Gurung helped in managing the friendlies.
Nepal had won a bronze medal in the third AVC Central Zone Volleyball Tournament in Maldives five months ago, which was the first official medal won by Nepal.
Nepal had also played two friendlies against Bangladesh in Kathmandu this year.
The Hong Kong friendlies are also taken as a preparation for the South Asian Games to be held in Nepal in 2019 and the fourth AVC Central Open Volleyball Tournament to be held in Bangladesh, informed NVA.
Hong Kong, the Pearl of the Orient, will shine again
