DOHA : Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan advanced to the quarter-finals of the Doha 2026 Asian Beach Volleyball Tour after winning all three Group A matches in straight sets at the International Beach Volleyball Center of Excellence in Al Gharafa.
The pair opened their campaign on Saturday with a 21-15 21-19 victory over Thailand’s Nalphadon and Puravich. They followed up with wins over China’s Li Wei and Yuan Ningfei (21-9 21-15) and Indonesia’s Firza and Rizki (21-13 21-9) to finish the group stage unbeaten without dropping a set.
Younousse and Tijan arrive at the tournament after winning gold at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games, securing their third consecutive Asian Games title following victories in 2018 and 2022. They also won gold at the Sanya 2026 Asian Beach Games and were named Asia’s Best Men’s Beach Volleyball Players for the 2025-2026 season.
The Qatar pair lead the men’s team standings with 4,660 points and will look to build on their recent success as they pursue the Doha title.
Qatar’s other two men’s teams were eliminated in the group stage. Mousa Al-Khair and Mohammed Ehab, representing Qatar 2, lost in straight sets to Australia’s Oliver Merritt and Jade Walker (13-21 17-21) and China’s Li Xiaokai and Sun Xinglong (24-26 13-21).
Qatar 3’s Saif Al Din Al Majid and Mahmoud Essam suffered two three-set defeats, losing to Indonesia’s Imam and Firouz (18-21 21-13 21-23) before falling to Thailand’s Nittithorn and Watcharawut (21-16 17-21 13-15).
Younousse and Tijan remain Qatar’s leading contenders in the men’s competition after an unbeaten group-stage run.
