宿敵ブラジルをフルセットで撃破！日本女子VNL初のメダル確定&決勝進出へ【バレーボールネーションズリーグ女子】

In the final round of the 2024 Women's Volleyball Nations League (Thailand), the Japanese national team faced Brazil in the semi-finals on Saturday, June 22nd (local time) and won 3-2 (26-24, 20-25, 25-21, 22-25, 15-12).

Starting members

Japan

OH: Koga (18), Ishikawa (16)
MB: Yamada (6), Araki (3)
OP: Hayashi (2)
S: Iwasaki (2)
L: Kojima, Fukudome

Substitutes: OP Wada (21), MB Miyabe (11), OH Inoue (5), S Seki, OP Kurogo

Brazil

OH: Gabi (21), Ana Cristina (7)
MB: Taiza (15), Carol (14)
OP: Rosamaria (16)
S: Roberta
L: Nieme

Substitutes: OH Bergman (17), OP Taynara (2), S Makris, OH Pri Daloit

*Positions: OH = outside hitter, MB = middle blocker, OP = opposite, S = setter, L = libero

※ () indicates score

TOSHIKI'S MVP

OP Yukiko Wada

21 points (1 on serve), attack efficiency rate 241 TP 3T

The game changer and best scorer of the match.

He entered the court midway through the first set, and after being held on set point, he made consecutive spikes to turn the game around and take the set. After that, he continued to attack from the right side, scoring 21 points, the most for both teams, and contributed to the victory.

Despite putting in a good performance against the USA, his team lost, but this time he led his team to victory with his own play.

Match commentary

Japan's first women's VNL final appearance!

Moreover, against Brazil, who had not lost in the VNL up to that point, and against whom Japan had suffered three consecutive full-set losses, Japan recorded a dramatic full-set victory, making it the fourth time lucky.

In the first set, Japan's serve and block worked well from the beginning, and they took a big lead of 11-4, but OH Bergman's spikes from the substitute team were unstoppable, and Brazil turned the game around to 21-24 and reached the set point first. However, OP Wada's spikes from the substitute team also tied the score, and OP Wada's spikes at the end gave Japan the lead in the first set.

In the second set, Brazil was unable to respond to attacks from OH Bergman, OH Gabi and MB Taiza and took the set 20-25.

However, in the third set, Japan's blocks and floor defense, led by substitute MB Miyabe, worked well to suppress Brazil's attacks, and OP Wada's attack success rate also improved, allowing Japan to score points well and take the set back 25-21.

In the following fourth set, Japan struggled with Brazil's blocks, and despite bringing in OH Inoue and Seki, they were unable to change the tide and lost the set to Brazil 22-25.

And then the fateful final set.

Right from the start, MB Yamada's serves broke down the opponents, and then MB Miyabe and OH Ishikawa added spikes to make it 4-0. Then MB Miyabe added two consecutive blocks to make it 7-1, and Japan took the lead.

From there, Brazil closed the gap to 7-6 with four consecutive breaks, including an ace, on MB Carroll's serve, and then tied the score at 9-9 with a block from MB Taiza.

However, with a spike from OH Koga and a service ace from MB Yamada, Japan took the lead again at 13-11, and finally OH Ishikawa scored two consecutive block outs to make the score 15-12, giving Japan the fifth set and a 3-2 victory.

The first and third sets were won by OP Wada, but the final fifth set was won by everyone else who stepped up a gear.

I also think that we were able to prove once again that if our serve and block work well, we can win against the world's competition. These two elements are essential to further improve Japan's world-class receiving.

Italy's opponent in the finals is OP Egon, who boasts extraordinary height among women. Normally, she would be able to hit a spike from above the Japanese block, but she often hits her spike down, so if she can block well every time, she should have a chance.

I think Hayashi will return to the starting opposite position in the final, but I would also like to see OP Wada, who performs well every time he plays, on the final stage.

The key to the match will be OH Ishikawa, who played in the Italian league. It will be exciting to see how she plays against the Italian national team.

Will Japan win the silver medal or the gold medal? The fateful match is just around the corner.

For detailed match stats,Here