The capital club earned two away wins over Kostanay’s Tobol in the Kazakhstan National League regular season. The games took place on 26 and 27 January at the Kostanay Sports Complex.
Tobol were without two of their key players in these matches — captain Shaim Kuanov and Rustam Valiev. Both are sidelined with injuries, and according to medical forecasts, fans may not see Kuanov back on court for the rest of the season.
The first game turned out to be the higher-scoring of the two for Astana. The visitors created a solid gap early on, finishing the opening quarter ahead 17:30. Tobol responded in the second period and improved their offence, but Astana still edged it 20:29. After the break, Astana returned looking sharp and firmly took control again, winning the third quarter 12:29. In the final period, the coaching staff gave more minutes to younger players, and they extended the lead even further, 15:31. The final score was 64:119, securing a confident win for Astana.
Askar Maidekin led the way with 18 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Ruslan Aitkali (16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists) and Rustam Murzagaliev (16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists) also stood out.
The second game proved tougher, with Tobol showing a stronger performance. The teams went back and forth for most of the game (20:27, 18:20, 19:18, 16:23). Only in the closing minutes did Astana manage to pull away and secure the win. The final score was 73:88, allowing the capital club to continue their unbeaten run in the National League regular season.
Next up for Astana is a new challenge in the West Asia Super League. The team will host Iran’s Shahrdari Gorgan in a WASL regular season game on 30 January at 19:30 at the Saryarka Velodrome.
 «Samruk-Kazyna» National Welfare Fund |
 Uniform operator «Tourism Industry and Sports Support Fund» |
