On the sixth day of the Paris Olympic Qualifiers/World Cup Volleyball 2023 Men's Tournament, the Japanese national team played against Slovenia and won 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-18). As a result, they are guaranteed to finish at least second in the tournament and have earned the right to participate in next year's Paris Olympics.
First set starting lineup
Japan
OH: Ai Takahashi, Ishikawa
MB: Onodera, Kentaro Takahashi
OP: Nishida
S: Sekita
L: Yamamoto
Slovenia
OH: Ulnart, Cheby
MB: Pajenk, Kozamelnik
OP: Mozic
S: Vincic
L: Kovacic
*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero
The stats for this match areHere
Match Report
In the first set, Japan's mistakes led to repeated losses, and Slovenia took a 1-6 lead. From there, Japan broke through with effective serves from S. Sekita, blocks from MB Onodera, and a service ace from OH Takahashi Ai, but Slovenia fought back with spikes from three side attackers and maintained a 13-16 lead. However, OH Ishikawa scored four consecutive breaks from balls that led to rallies from S. Sekita's serves, and Japan turned the game around to 18-16. In the final stages, MB Takahashi Kentaro's direct spike from OH Ishikawa's serve, and OH Takahashi Ai's direct spike from a strong serve from OP Nishida were also scored, and Japan took the set 25-21.
In the second set, a good serve from MB Onodera, a block from S Sekita, and a pipe attack from OH Takahashi Ai put Japan ahead at 6-5, but service aces from OP Mojic and OH Cevri helped Slovenia turn the game around to 8-11. However, a block from MB Onodera and a service ace from OP Nishida brought Japan to a tie at 12-12, and then spikes from Nishida and Ishikawa and mistakes from Slovenia helped Japan turn the game around to 17-16. Towards the end, a block from OH Takahashi Ai and a mistake from Slovenia allowed Japan to widen the gap to 22-19, and finally OP Nishida scored a spike to win the set 25-22.
In the third set, MB Yamauchi, who entered the court midway through the second set, was used from the start. From the beginning, Japan took a 5-2 lead with MB Onodera's quick and OH Takahashi Ai's attack. From there, Slovenia tied the score at 7-7 with OP Mojic's spike and MB Kozamelnik's block, and in the middle of the game, OH Urnarto's service ace successfully turned the game around to 13-14. However, immediately afterwards, S Sekita scored a direct spike from a Slovenian combination mistake, and then OH Takahashi Ai's two service aces put Japan at 18-14 again. In the final stages, S Sekita's service ace and others further extended the lead to 23-16, and OH Ishikawa's spike for the 24th point and a final serve error by Slovenia made it 25-18, and Japan won this set as well, defeating Slovenia 3-0.
TOSHIKI'S MVP
Japan: S. Sekita Masahiro
2 points (1 serve, 1 block), team attack success rate 56%
I would like to give the MVP to Ishikawa, who scored the most points, but I think it was Sekita today. In addition to his game-making, which left a high team attack success rate of 561 TP and 3 T throughout the match, he also created a comeback with a total of 6 breaks from his own serve in the first set. His serve had a high break rate throughout the match, and he also had a service ace in the third set, and he also showed his presence with 1 kill and 2 touches on blocks. His sets to middle blockers, which are his forte, were closely marked by the opponent in the early stages of the match, and his success rate did not increase, but as the success rate of the side attackers increased, the marking became lighter, and conversely, the number of side attacks decreased in the third set, but he recovered with a quick from the middle blocker. There was also a rare scene where he spiked the opponent's free ball directly, but it seems that the opponent committed a foul just before, so it was not recorded in the official record... (laughs).
Slovenia: OP Rok Mojic
16 points (3 on serve), attack efficiency rate 45.451 TP3T
He was the best scorer in this match. He scored a lot of points with his high and powerful spikes and serves. In particular, if his serves went in, he had a high probability of getting an ace or a break, so if he had served more, the match might have been different. However, since most of the other players in Slovenia were not able to attack effectively, it could be said that one of the reasons for the loss was that they relied too much on Mojic. It was not Japan vs. Slovenia, but more like Japan vs. Mojic. But the current Japanese national team is not weak enough to be defeated by one star player like that. But his original position is an outside hitter. He is a man who can do anything.
Thoughts etc.
On this day, I was able to watch the game live!!!
Ryujin Nippon Qualifies for the Paris Olympics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's great. A 3-0 win against Slovenia would have secured a place in the Paris Olympics, and they did a fantastic job winning 3-0 to secure a place in Paris.
Personally, I was a little disappointed that the final match against the United States would become a dead giveaway, so I thought to myself, "I'd like to win 3-1 today and enjoy the thrill of not knowing the outcome until tomorrow" (laughs), but they are not the kind of team that would lose even a single set to Slovenia at this stage.
The team that had struggled against Finland and lost to Egypt was nowhere to be seen.
In the beginning of the first set, they made a lot of mistakes and were behind by a large margin. Ishikawa struggled with his matchup with Mozic, and was howling when he lost a point due to a joust (a push-and-push on the net). He also had a block touch on the quick shot by the captain of the attack in the early part of the match, and his success rate was not improving.
However, even in such a situation, blocks from the middle players, an ace from Ran Takahashi, and a powerful Ishikawa festival after Sekita's serve aimed at his opponent's Cheburi allowed them to score consecutive breaks, and before they knew it, they had turned the game around.
And in the end, Nishida, who looked more gorilla-like than usual (I'm praising him), made a strong serve, and Ai's direct spike was decided, and Japan took the first set. Captain Ishikawa roared to the bench.
Today, Ishikawa looked like a gorilla (and I mean that as a compliment).
In the second set, Ran Takahashi made some unusual spikes and missed attempts early on, but after that it was a fierce battle with both sides breaking the game with service aces and blocks.
Sekita's block, Ai's pipe tip that catches the opponent off guard, and Mojic's powerful ace. Every single play is so exciting.
Kentaro cramped up and was replaced by Yamauchi. He had also injured his shoulder and had been out since the match against Tunisia, but his play showed no sign of a break. He may have been itching to see everyone else play their normal games.
At 15-15, I was able to admire the sadistic Sekita who casually tossed the ball to Ishikawa who had just won the first point, and Ishikawa who casually scored it. Sekita is the type who keeps tossing the ball to players who make the opponent think, "This guy can't join the attack anymore." This is great (laughs).
From there, Mozic hit another service ace to tie the score and create tension, but Mozic was unable to maintain his serve today.
On the other hand, Ai made a splendid block to stop Urunaruto, picked up the ball herself and piped it in, making it 23-20. And finally, Nishida made a spike all the way to the line, and Japan won the set 25-22!!!
And in this match too, Japan did not experience the ``dreaded third set.''
Rather, Onodera's quick shots started to work from the beginning and made a successful start. At 5-2, Ai pulled the blocker's hand and induced a mistake from Urnaruto. These tactics were honed in the Italian league this season.
Everyone was roaring in anticipation of more points being scored in the third set. Everyone was like a gorilla!!!
Even when the plays don't result in points, their desperate one-handed receives, blocking touches, and each and every play that shows their 120% make my heart beat faster.
Slovenia also took a temporary lead of 13-14 with a service ace from Ulnart, but that didn't matter to the Japanese national team right now.
From there, Sekita's attack caught fire and Ai hit two service aces to pull away.
Mojic's serve, Slovenia's last hope, also went into error, leading to an ace from Sekita, a spike from Nishida, and a spike from Ishikawa to score the Olympic point.
As if he had been aiming for this, the serve came to Ishikawa, but his full-power serve unfortunately went out.
"I want someone to decide the last point with a spike, so please don't make a serve error!" I pleaded with Slovenia's Kozamelnik, but my wish was not granted and his serve also ended in an error, resulting in a 3-0 victory for Japan, who secured a place in the Paris Olympics.
I had no doubt that Japan would obviously go to the Paris Olympics given how strong they had been this year, so I didn't think I would be too shaken, but when I saw the expressions on the players' faces when it was actually decided that they would go to the Paris Olympics, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.
I was particularly moved by the interview with Sekita, who was wearing the uniform of former Japanese national team player Fujii, who passed away this year at the age of 31.
This season in particular, I have watched all the official matches live, including on video, and have also been able to witness all the important matches in person (I think I am the only one other than the team staff to have done so), including the victory over Brazil for the first time in 30 years, the first medal at a major world tournament in 46 years, and the Asian Championship victory, so I have once again realized that this year's team was truly special to me as well.
I was able to witness the moment when my favorite team was selected to compete in the Olympics, and although it may sound like I'm bragging, I really am lucky! (laughs) I couldn't be happier!!
As my seat was close to the entrance and exit for the players, I called out to the players as they were leaving. Miyaura-kun and Ai-kun didn't notice me, but Yamamoto Ryu-kun did (laughs). I was also able to congratulate the coach, Fukatsu-san (my second son).
Also, thank you to everyone who noticed me at the venue and spoke to me! I was very happy! I look forward to seeing you on the final day! (laughs)
Standings (as of the end of Day 6)
1. USA 6 wins, 0 losses, 18 points ★
2. Japan 5 wins, 1 loss, 15 points ★
3. Slovenia: 4 wins, 2 losses, 12 points (set ratio 2.6)
4. Serbia 3 wins, 3 losses, 9 points
5. Türkiye 3 wins, 3 losses, 8 points
6. Egypt 2 wins, 4 losses, 4 points
7. Finland: 1 win, 5 losses, 5 points
8. Tunisia 0 wins, 6 losses, 1 point
★Qualified for the Paris Olympics
Upcoming match schedule
October 8th (Sun) vs USA
*All matches will start at 7:25pm
Photo: FIVB
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