10th King Abdullah Cup slated for July 25

Jordan’s first-division national team and technical staff. (Photo: JBF)
Jordan’s first-division national team and technical staff. (Photo: JBF)
AMMAN — The Jordan Basketball Federation (JBF) is in the process of organizing the 10th iteration of the King Abdullah Cup to start on July 25 and run through August 3. اضافة اعلان

The tournament will aid the first-division national team’s preparations for the FIBA Asia Cup to be held in Jakarta, Indonesia between August 17 and August 29.

Four teams have RSVP’d for the event, alongside Jordan, including Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria and Saudi Arabia. The JBF is still awaiting Morocco’s response to confirm whether or not it will attend, according to JBF Secretary General Nabeel Abu Ata.

“We have directly contacted the federations in Czech Republic, Russia, Germany, Serbia and Greece, and are waiting for confirmation of whether they will attend,” Abu Ata added, noting that Angola has declined the invitation.

The JBF official continued: “The countries that have not qualified for the (Tokyo) Olympics are unlikely to partake in the tournament with their first-division teams, which is setback, while those that are due to attend the Games will play with all their players, which is what we are after.”

Teams qualifying for the Games — scheduled between July 23 and August 8 must be present 14 days prior to the international event, which may make it difficult for some nations to send their teams to the King Abdullah Cup.

“Our goal is to prepare the national team without the need to leave the country and putting the players at risk of contracting COVID-19. We will try to organize the largest number of games for the team,” Abu Ata explained, adding that Jordan’s new naturalized player will be joining his teammates.

Trust sources have informed Jordan News that the JBF may put the national team through a regional championship slated for early August, before they leave for Jakarta.

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