In the second week of the men's qualifying round for the Volleyball Nations League 2025 (Bulgaria), the Japanese national team faced France on Thursday, June 26th (local time) and won 3-2 (25-22, 19-25, 22-25, 25-20, 15-11).
Starting Lineup
Japan
S Oya (1), OH Kai (8), MB Sato (3), OP Miyaura (23), OH Tomita (6), MB Rally (4), L Ogawa
Substitutes: OH Otsuka (10), MB Murayama (2), OP Nishiyama (2), S Nagatsuyu, OH Yamazaki (8), MB Miwa (4)
France
OH Potron (8), MB Gaye (11), OP Fall (19), OH Cleveno (24), MB Huet (14), S Tizi-Uar (3), L Diez
Substitutes: S. Brizard (1), OH Ruati
Battle Review
1st set: OP Miyaura scores 7 points with spikes, Japan wins the tense match
In the early stages, Japan was scoring points mainly from OP Miyaura, but France scored consecutive points with a block from MB Huet and a spike from OH Clevenau to take a 7-9 lead. However, France's mistakes later gave Japan the lead at 16-15. Furthermore, relief server OH Yamazaki's good serve was followed by a spike from OH Tomita, putting Japan ahead at 20-18. Japan kept the lead in the final stages, and OP Miyaura finally scored a spike to take the set 25-22.
Second set: Unstoppable OH Clevenau and the French block work
France took the opening rally with a block from MB Gayer, then OP Fall's serve led to consecutive breaks and a 1-4 lead. Japan scored with spikes from OH Kai and other points to close the gap to 6-7, but OP Fall's powerful service ace put France back in front at 9-12. France further widened the gap to 12-17 with blocks from MB Gayer and spikes from OH Potlon. Japan replaced OP Nishiyama and S Nagatsuyu, but France continued to score with attacks from OH Cleveno that mixed speed and speed, making the score 19-24. Finally, OH Cleveno closed a long rally that continued from his serve with a pipe attack, and France took the set back at 19-25.
Third set: Opole was outstanding with spikes, blocks and serves.
In the early stages, France took the lead 1-3 with consecutive blocks. From there, OP Miyaura's spike tied the score at 7-7, but OP Fall's spikes and aces, MB Yue's blocks and spikes, and France widened the gap to 10-15. The game continued with that gap until the end, but Japan narrowed the gap to 21-23 with a block by MB Miwa, who entered the match as a substitute, and powerful consecutive aces by OP Miyaura. However, in the end, OH Clevenau scored an attack and France took the set 22-25.
4th set: Aggressive serves and the decisiveness of OH Otsuka and Yamazaki
Japan started with four players: MB Miwa, MB Murayama, OH Yamazaki, and OH Otsuka.
Right from the start, OH Yamazaki scored a service ace and Japan broke. In a rally from OP Miyaura's serve, OH Otsuka scored consecutive spikes, giving Japan a 6-3 lead. Japan made some mistakes and the score was 6-5, but MB Murayama's service ace and OH Otsuka's spikes allowed Japan to extend their lead to 13-9. France brought on S Brizard, who had only been used at the end of each set until then, early on. However, OP Miyaura's service ace and L Ogawa's dig set led to OP Miyaura's spike, making the score 17-12, and Japan's momentum was unstoppable. Even in the final stages, Japan continued to score with OH Yamazaki's spikes and other points, taking the set point at 24-19, and finally OP Nishiyama, who came in as a substitute, scored to make it 25-20 and take the full set.
5th set: Japan continues to attack, OP Miyaura finishes with a service ace
The early stages were close, but OP Miyaura's good serve was blocked by OH Otsuka, putting Japan one step ahead at 6-4. Furthermore, MB Murayama's service ace and S Oya's direct spike from a long rally extended Japan's lead to 10-6. From there, France's serve errors made it 13-10, and OP Miyaura's spike put Japan on match point at 14-11. Finally, OP Miyaura's serve went into the net for an ace, and Japan won the set 15-11, defeating France 3-2.
Match stats▼
https://vnlm.volleystation.com/en/phase-3450-vnl-2025-men/matches/2227644/
personal MVP
OP Kento Miyaura
23 points (attack 18, serve 4, block 1), attack efficiency rate 291 TP 3T
Opposite led his team to victory with 23 points. In the first set, he led the team with a highly decisive attack. From the end of the third set, his signature strong arm serve was on fire, bringing momentum to the team and ultimately deciding the match. Japan has now defeated France in the VNL qualifying round for three consecutive years. And Miyaura has been active in every match. It's safe to call him the France killer.
It goes without saying that S Oya, who continued to put up stable sets, and L Ogawa, who showed off solid defense and splendid jump sets, were also amazing. The four members who came in from the bench added explosiveness to that foundation, resulting in a come-from-behind victory.
OH Trevor Klevenot
24 points (attack 23, block 1), attack efficiency rate 511 TP 3T
He scored 24 points, the most for both teams. He showed high scoring power throughout the match, especially with a variety of attacks that mixed speed and speed, and made Japan's defense suffer. On the other hand, his attack efficiency was slightly reduced, which led to Japan's comeback victory from the fourth set onwards. Although he has been a double gold medalist in full operation since the first week, he still cannot lose to younger players.
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Qualifying Round Rankings
As of 5:30 on June 27th (Friday)
1 Poland 4 wins, 1 loss, 13 points, 14/5 sets
2 Brazil 4 wins, 1 loss, 12 points, 14/5 sets
3 Slovenia 4 wins, 1 loss, 11 points, 12/7 sets
4 Japan 4 wins, 2 losses, 11 points, 13/8 sets
5 Italy 4 wins, 1 loss, 10 points, 13/9 sets
6 Ukraine 3 wins, 3 losses, 10 points, 13/11 sets
7 France 3 wins, 3 losses, 9 points, 13/12 sets
8 Cuba 3 wins, 3 losses, 9 points, 13/13 sets
9 Bulgaria 3 wins, 2 losses, 8 points, 10/8 sets
10 Argentina 3 wins, 2 losses, 8 points, 10/9 sets
11 USA 3 wins, 2 losses, 7 points, 10/11 set
12 Germany 2 wins, 4 losses, 9 points, 13/14 set
13 Canada 2 wins, 3 losses, 7 points, 10/11 sets
14 Iran 2 wins, 3 losses, 7 points, 10/12 sets
15 China 2 wins, 3 losses, 7 points, 8/10 sets
16 Netherlands 1 win 5 losses 3P 6/16 set
17 Türkiye 1 win 5 losses 3P 5/15 sets
18 Serbia 1 win 5 losses 3P 5/16 sets
*The host country China and the top seven teams from the preliminary rounds will advance to the final round.
Next race information
June 27th (Friday) 21:00～ vs Ukraine
How to watch
Here's how to watch VNL2025:
Related links
Photo: FIVB
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