By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Basketball Australia announced via a tweet that the Men’s national team won’t be traveling to face Iran in Tehran Tuesday (15/11) for Round 2 of the 2023 World Cup Qualifiers Asia due to security reasons.
Per the Australian Federation:
The Australian Boomers were due to travel to Iran for a FIBA World Cup Qualifier on 15 November. Basketball Australia have conducted a thorough risk assessment in conjunction with relevant authorities and as a result we will not be sending any teams into Iran at this time.
After FIBA was notified of this decision, the game was forfeited in favor of Iran. FIBA says that there will be an investigation regarding possible “further measures” in the future. Australia clinched a spot in the World Cup by beating Kazakhstan 97 – 50 on the road Friday (11/11). Iran is now 6-4 in third in Group F.
The Australian government has issued an advisory warning regarding the protests in Iran in the aftermath of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini’s death, mentioning that there’s a considerable possibility of terrorist attacks, bombings and shootings. The warning also mentions that there’s a serious risk of foreign people getting “arbitrarily detained or arrested.”
Australia guard Dejan Vasilijevic expressed how worried he and his teammates were ahead of the trip to Iran and how relieved they became after it was decided they won’t be traveling. “Honestly, we are happy not playing Iran in Iran, just with all the chaos and protests going on,” he said to The Herald Sun. “As much as we all wanted to play another game for our country, there was no security and assurance for us, so BA [Basketball Australia] made the right choice.”
Photo: FIBA