Qatar group is toughest: FIBA poll

Beirut, Lebanon: Basketball fans picked Group B, which has Qatar, China, the Philippines and Iraq, as the Group of Death in the FIBA Asia Cup following an online poll conducted by the world body.

A total of 6,500 fans voted on the poll, with Group B garnering 3,769 votes.

Group A, which has Iran, Jordan, Syria and India, was second with 2,147 votes followed by Group C and Group D, which got 409 and 168 votes respectively.

Defending champions China and the Philippines are very strong sides, but GCC champions Qatar and Iraq likely to add some intensity in the group matches.

The tournament, featuring the top 14 teams in Asia joined by Australia and New Zealand from Oceania, will be held from August 8-20.