Final qualifying rankings
- Brazil 13 wins 38 points (winning points) ★
- Poland 12 wins 37 points ★
- Slovenia 12 wins 34 points ★
- France 11 wins 34 points ★
- Russia 11 wins 34 points
- Serbia 10 wins 28 points
- USA 8 wins 24 points
- Canada 7 wins 21 points
- Argentina 7 wins 20 points
- Italy 7 wins 19 points
- Japan 7 wins 19 points
- Iran 5 wins 18 points
- Germany 4 wins 14 points
- Netherlands 3 wins 11 points
- Bulgaria 2 wins 7 points
- Australia 1 win 2 points
*Rankings are determined by number of wins > points > set rate > point rate.
*★ indicates finalist
Japan is in 11th place with 7 wins and 8 losses. The difference with Italy in 10th place was a mere 0.04 set rate. It seems that the results were due to the fact that even when they won, it was a full set, and when they lost, it didn't go to a full set. Canada also had 7 wins, but their ranking is quite different from 8th place. Tournament matches are different, but in league matches, it is very important to win as easily as possible and not lose easily. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks that Nishida would be in perfect condition from the start, but it can't be helped. Anyway, thank you very much for your hard work.
That slight difference determined the outcome of the battle for fourth place, which continued until the final day. France, Russia, and Serbia were all tied with 10 wins each, and France was leading in points until the day before, but Russia and Serbia were also in a position where they could advance to the semi-finals if the other two teams lost. My prediction was that France would play Poland and Russia would play Brazil, so I thought that Serbia, playing against Canada, would go on to the semi-finals.
But first, Canada came back from 0-2 down to win 3-2, denying Serbia a chance to advance to the finals. Then France beat Poland, which was back to back with the "Three Musketeers" of Kubiak, Kulek, and Leon, 3-2 to advance to the finals on their own. Russia also won in straight sets against Brazil, but with a difference of 0.004 in set percentage, Russia's consecutive victories came to an end.
The star rating table is below:
Final match schedule
Semi-finals
26th (Sat) 18:30～ Brazil vs France
26th (Sat) 22:00～ Poland vs Slovenia
3rd Place Match
27th (Sun) 18:30～ Losers from the previous day
Finals
27th (Sun) 22:00～ Winners from the previous day
Team information here
Personally, I'm rooting for Poland, but their opponent in the semi-finals will be their rival Slovenia. They've lost twice in the European Championships, and they lost in the qualifying rounds for this tournament. But at that time, they were playing with players who were conserving Leon and Krek, so I think they'll bring about a different result in the semi-finals. But Slovenia is also a really good team. It's going to be a hot game.
The other semi-final match is France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the qualifiers. However, the difference in strength is also small, so it is unclear how the semi-finals will turn out. This is also likely to be a very heated match!
Personally, I want to see the final between Poland and France! There are a lot of players I support, and it's a Panasonic showdown (lol). Oh, Milan fans, Slovenia vs France seems like a good match (lol). Anyway, the Japanese match is over, but let's watch the world's best match together right before the Olympics!!
Photo: FIVB
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