In the second week of the Fukuoka round of the Volleyball Nations League 2024 Men's Tournament, the Japanese national team played against Slovenia on Saturday, June 8th local time and won 3-1 (25-23, 19-25, 26-24, 25-21).
Starting members
Japan
OH: Ai (16), Ishikawa (12)
MB: Onodera (4), Yamauchi (8)
OP: Nishida (26)
S: Sekita (1)
L: Yamamoto
Substitutes: OH Kai (1), OP Miyaura, OH Otsuka, MB Kentaro
Slovenia
OH: Ulnart (13), Chaebri (12)
MB: Payenk (7), Kozamelnik (8)
OP: T. Stern (27)
S: Loplet (2)
L: Kovacic
Substitutes: S. Vincic, OP Mujanovic
*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero
※ () indicates score
TOSHIKI'S MVP
OP Nishida Yutaka
26 points (4 serves, 2 blocks), attack efficiency rate 571 TP 3T
While outside hitters Ishikawa and Ai struggled with their spikes, she scored a staggering 711 TP3T attack success rate throughout the game, and also had the most service aces of both teams with 4. She was a reliable ace who scored every point when things got tough and she needed a point.
It was a truly amazing performance. It really makes you forget that he is 186cm tall. In fact, when you look at the photo, you can see that he is hitting the ball from a 2m block. That's crazy.
Not only does he have the powerful spikes that are synonymous with his gorilla style, but he also has a wide range of techniques, such as intentionally sucking the ball into the block and using soft shots. Clever Gorilla.
It was undoubtedly the best performance in this year's Nations League, which has been in great form.
Match commentary
The match once again proved the strength of the Japanese men's team.
Despite the mainstay OH Ishikawa being out of form, the team attacked with serves, everyone picked up the ball, passed it around, and OP Nishida scored, winning a close match with volleyball.
The match started with OP Nishida and OP Stern trading points from the first set, with the score tied at 23-23 going into the final stages, but Slovenia made a series of mistakes and Japan won 25-23 in the end.
In the second set, Slovenia took the lead from the beginning, scoring a total of seven blocks in this set alone. Japan also fought back with spikes from OP Nishida and MB Yamauchi, but OH Ishikawa struggled with his spikes and was replaced by OH Kai midway through.
In the final stages, Slovenia pulled away to 15-22 with consecutive service aces from OH Ulnart, and eventually won the set 19-25.
Early in the third set, Japan extended their lead to 9-5 with a service ace from S. Sekita, but Slovenia broke through with a spike from OP Stern and a block from MB Kozamelnik to turn the game around to 17-18.
Slovenia was the first to get a set point at 23-24, but then OH Ishikawa and OP Nishida spiked in succession to give them a set point at 25-24, and finally OH Ai spiked to give Japan the set at 26-24.
The fourth set continued at Japan's pace. OP Nishida, who was in top form in this match, continued to score one after another with spikes and blocks, never allowing the opponent to take the lead, and even the match point was decided by OP Nishida's spike, and Japan won 25-21, set count 3-1.
It was undoubtedly the aforementioned OP Nishida who led Japan on the offensive side, but it was OH Ai who impressed on defense.
He showed a stable serve reception with zero lost points, a high number of digs and a high success rate. Furthermore, at the end of the third set, he showed a super play where he picked up the opponent's spike while falling, and then returned the third spike while jumping with one hand, giving the team momentum.
Of course, he has a sharp spike and a serve that is fast and slow, but his play made me realize that his true strength is his defense. There are probably few outside hitters in the world who can impress with their defense while also possessing high offensive power.
Captain OH Ishikawa had the worst performance in the tournament with an attack effectiveness rate of only 3%. Still, the current Japanese men's national team can beat strong opponents. There is no doubt that Ishikawa is the center of the team, but the team is by no means dependent on Ishikawa.
With only four games left in the Nations League qualifying round in the Philippines, I hope they can continue on this path all the way to the final match in the final round.
For detailed match stats,Here
Highlight Video
Next race information
vs Canada
June 18th (Tuesday) 21:30~ (Japan time)
Television broadcast
BS-TBS (LIVE)
TBS Nations League special site (you can check the TV broadcast schedule, etc.):https://www.tbs.co.jp/volley-nationsleague/
Online broadcast (LIVE)
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Photo: FIVB
English 
Japanese