JEDDAH (Saudi Arabia) - After the recent update to the FIBA World Rankings presented by Nike, Saudi Arabia emerged as one of the highest leapers in the standings in the Asia-Oceania region. By moving up 10 spots from their ranking prior to the update, Saudi Arabia have now cracked in to be among one of the top 100 teams of the world and top 20 teams of Asia-Oceania.

They currently sit at 94^th place in the world and 19^th place in the region.

“We feel our hard work has paid off,” said Dr. Ghassan Tashkandi, SBF Board Member and Head of National Team Committee.. “In fact, we have climbed 29 spots in a year’s time which is very rewarding. Yet, we are determined to compete again at the continental level.”

Saudi Arabia were among the top climbers in the world, shooting up 12 spots after the update in September 18, 2018. Their undefeated run (4-0) through the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Pre-Qualifiers - West Region was key to their massive jump up the rankings.Most significantly were their wins against Bahrain in Manama and higher-ranked Palestine that were the major contributions. They have only continued to make leaps and bounds after each update since.

With the first window of the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers coming up in February 2020 against Qatar and Syria, the opportunity rises once again for Saudi Arabia to get even higher up the ladder. They have their eyes set on making it to the big stage in 2021 as well as building up for the future.

“For our senior National Team, our focus now is to qualify for the upcoming FIBA Asia cup. However, we are also currently working on a major youth development plan which I believe will assist us in the near future to progress towards higher level competitions,” added Dr. Tashkandi.

Saudi Arabia’s youth development plan is to work in both they age categories, U16 and U18. Both national teams in the mentioned age groups have successfully qualified for the upcoming FIBA U16 and U18 Asian Championships through the Gulf region.

FIBA