Qatar stunned Chinese Taipei in thrilling three-setter 25-16, 25-15, 25-23 to reach the semi-finals of the 22nd Asian Volleyball Championship in Urmia, Iran, on Thursday. Against Chinese Taipei, the Qataris excelled in defence and had good teamwork, with their spectacular attacks overcoming the tough rivals’ solid blocks. Winning the first two sets without much effort 25-16, 25-15, Qatar, silver medallists of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Challenger Cup on home soil, went on their fine form to win the competitive third set 25-23 and match. Prolific Oughlaf Youssef chipped in with 13 points for Qatar, while Chang Yu-Sheng was the only Chinese Taipei player who scored double digits with 13 points. Qatar will next battle it out with unbeaten Japan in the semi-final clash on Friday, while Chinese Taipei will challenge the losers of the mighty clash between Korea and China in the 5th-6th playoff encounter on the same day.