The victorious Qatar team pose flanked by runners-up Serbia and third-placed Russia at the awards ceremony in Moscow yesterday. At bottom, QBF president Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani holds the winners’ trophy.

Sports Reporter/Moscow


Qatar made history by winning the men’s title in the 2014 FIBA 3x3 World Championships at Luzhniki Park in Moscow yesterday.
Putting in a commanding performance, Qatar, led by veteran Yaseen Ismail Musa beat favourites Serbia 18-13 to cap a brilliant run in the tournament, the pinnacle of glory in the three-on-three format of basketball which is fast catching up all over the world.
“It’s a historic day for Qatari sports, especially basketball, and I dedicate this win to HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani,” Qatar Basketball Federation president and Qatar Olympic Committee secretary-general Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said after a sensational performance by Musa, Boney Watson, Mohamed Saleem and Erfaan Saeed gave the country a rare world title in a team sport.
“I congratulate Yaseen and his team for their brilliant show throughout the tournament. It was tremendous, the way they kept their cool in the tournament and emerged triumphant,” added a visibly delighted Sheikh Saoud who watched the entire game from the stands.
Less than a couple of hours ago, Qatar had edged a strong Lithuanian outfit 14-13 in a thrilling semi-final contest but the team showed no signs of fatigue as they demolished Serbia with clinical precision in the decider.
Watson was undoubtedly the star of the final, producing some unbelievable shots at crucial moments after the team made a cracking start to the game.
Before Serbia could settle down, Qatar had raced to a 3-1 lead in the opening exchanges – a handy advantage in a match that is played over just 10 minutes.
But although Serbia caught up with Qatar, it was pretty evident that Qatar had the momentum and the determination to outwit the eastern Europeans as Watson and Erfaan were virtually unstoppable.
Soon Qatar had taken a 9-6 lead but a brief period of sluggishness saw Serbia claw back.  But when the teams were locked 12-all with just three minutes on the clock, it looked like anybody’s game.
However, a brilliant shot by Ali put Qatar 13-12 up, a bit of passing around ensuring the score stayed that way until one minute and 45 seconds remained.
Erfaan then produced another blinder to help Qatar lead 14-12 with one minute and a mere 25 seconds remaining. And when Watson nailed another shot from the line, tumbling over in the process, Qatar’s victory was more or less assured.
Watson  then eased a free-throw into the basket to make it 16-12 with 20 seconds to go, by which time Serbia had virtually conceded the fight.
“I want to dedicate this victory to the people of Qatar,” said veteran Musa after his team’s success. “When we came to Moscow for the event we knew the tournament would be tough but we were determined to show our mettle,” he added.
Watson also was thrilled with the team’s success.
“All credit to the boys. It was a brilliant few days in Moscow and now we are the world champions. The 3x3 concept is getting popular by the day and I am sure in Qatar too many youngsters will pick up the game,” Watson, who scored the match-winner in the semi-final against Lithuania, added.
Qatar were in Group B along with hosts Russia, Romania, Lithuania, Venezuela and Argentina.
Poland, Germany, USA, Tunisia, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands were placed in Group A while Brazil, Turkey, Estonia, Uruguay, New Zealand and Puerto Rico figured in Group C. Slovenia, Serbia, Japan, Croatia, Indonesia and China completed Group D.
Qatar won seven of their nine matches in the five-day event for an average score of 16.2 points per game after scoring 146 points in total.
Runners-up Serbia also scored seven wins in nine games, but fell in the final. Russia beat Lithuania 19-18 to take third place.