On the first day of the third week of the Nations League, the Japan men's volleyball team faced China in Pasay City, Philippines and won 3-2 (24-26, 25-23, 21-25, 25-23, 15-12).
First set starting lineup
Japan
OH: Ai Takahashi, Ishikawa
MB: Onodera, Yamauchi
OP: Nishida
S: Sekita
L: Yamamoto
China
OH: Yu, Jiang Jinying
MB: Lee, Pon
OP: Zhang Chuan
S: One
L: Yang
*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 took a 7-2 lead with spikes from OP Nishida and a service ace from MB Onodera. From there, Japan widened the gap to 19-10 with two consecutive service aces from OH Takahashi Ai. China also closed the gap to 22-18 with spikes from OH Jian, but a block from MB Yamauchi put Japan at 24-18 and put them on set point first. However, after that, China scored two service aces from OH Jian's serve, and OH Ishikawa was caught by a block twice in a row, scoring eight consecutive points and taking the set with a huge comeback of 24-26.
In the second set, OH Takahashi Ai again scored two consecutive service aces to give Japan a 4-2 lead, but China made consecutive blocks to turn the game around to 4-5, and the game became even more competitive from there. In the middle of the game, OH Takahashi Ai was caught in a block, and China widened the gap to 10-13. MB Lee's quick plays and other plays allowed China to get side outs and maintain a 17-19 lead. However, OP Nishida's service ace and MB Onodera's block allowed Japan to turn the game around to 21-19, and on the 24th point, Libero Yamamoto's receiving ace also came out, giving Japan momentum, and finally OH Ishikawa scored a spike to give Japan the set 25-23.
In the third set, Japan started with MB Kentaro Takahashi, who had been in the middle of the second set. Both teams made serve mistakes and the game continued to be competitive, but China took the lead 8-10 with MB Pong's block and OP Nishida's attack mistake. After that, China continued to break with OH Yu's spike and MB Lee's block, widening the gap to 14-19. Japan made two substitutions, and OP Miyaura, who came in, stepped up with a spike, but in the end, OH Yu's service ace was successful and China took the set 21-25.
In the fourth set, Japan, with no other options, started OP Miyaura from the start and brought MB Yamauchi back to the court. In the early stages, China took a 5-9 lead with spikes from OH Yu and a service ace from OH Zai, who entered the match as a substitute. However, spikes from OH Ishikawa and OP Miyaura helped Japan tie the score at 13-13, and China made some mistakes, allowing Japan to turn the game around and win at 18-17. After that, China took the lead again at 21-22 with blocks from MB Pon, but Japan was first to grab the set point when OH Ishikawa and OP Miyaura scored consecutive spikes on a cutback from OH Takahashi Ai's serve, and finally OH Zai's serve made an error, giving Japan the set at 25-23 and sending the match into a tiebreak.
In the fifth set, China attacked mainly with OH Jian, while Japan managed to spread the ball to the three players on the side and scored points to advance to 6-5. From here, Japan took the lead to 8-5 with a service ace from OP Miyaura, and China made some mistakes to widen the gap to 10-6. In the final stages, MB Yamauchi's quick shots were successful one after another, and finally OP Miyaura scored a spike to win the set 15-12, and Japan won the set 3-2 against China.
With this victory, Japan has maintained their provisional first place position in the VNL qualifying round with a total of 9 wins and 24 points from 9 matches. With this victory, they have also secured their place in the final round to be held in Gdansk (Poland) from Wednesday, July 19th.
Japan's next match will be against the Netherlands on 7 July (Friday) at 8:00pm Japan time.
personal MVP
Japan: OP Kento Miyaura
15 points (1 on serve), attack effectiveness rate 55%
He was the game changer in this match. He entered the court midway through the third set, and led his team to a comeback victory with his decisive spikes. Just like in the France tournament, he was in unrivaled mode, winning with just one hit, and in today's match, the other attackers were struggling to land their attacks, so his performance brought a big momentum to the Japanese team. Also, just like in the match against Brazil, I think his service ace in the fifth set was what decided the game, and his foot dig was also a nice play. Miyaura, it seems like he's a contractor for full-set victories in this tournament!
Runner-up: S. Seida Seita
He recovered well in the fourth and fifth sets, and his digs stood out in this match (in fact, he was first on the team in digs).
China: OH Zhang Jinying
21 points (2 serves, 2 blocks), attack effectiveness rate 331 TP 3T, serve reception success rate 39%
He was the one who gave Japan nightmares in the first set (only Zhang could do that lol). After that, he made Japan suffer not only with his serves but also with his spikes and blocks, taking advantage of his 207cm height, scoring the most points of both teams. There were many scenes where he hit high balls over the Japanese block, and there was really nothing we could do about it. Come to think of it, we were also beaten badly by him at the 2021 Asian Championships. We will likely face China again at this year's Asian Championships, so we'll want to have a solid strategy for him.
Thoughts etc.
I never thought the game would turn out like this...
To be honest, since we had comfortably won the friendly matches against China, I thought they would be the easiest opponent not only among the four teams competing in the Philippines tournament, but also in the qualifying round, so I naturally thought they would win 3-0.
And in the first set, as expected, China made a lot of mistakes, while Japan played a relaxed game and took a six-point lead at 24-18 to reach set point first.
However, from there they got a side out, then Zhang Jingying's serve resulted in a service ace, and Ishikawa was blocked in succession, resulting in an unexpected reversal of eight consecutive points, taking the first set...
We continued to struggle after that, but Miyaura, who came on as a substitute, somehow managed to change the tide and we finally secured victory.
Well, watching it made me very tired...
China was really strong today, they were aggressive with their serves, they had a total of 17 blocks in one game (8 of which were by Lee in the middle), and their floor defense was solid, so Japan's spikes didn't go in. No matter how many times they tried, they couldn't get it in, and it even felt like they were being defeated by the volleyball that Japan wanted to play.
On the other hand, Japan was able to break down the opponents well, and even when the opponents set high balls, the aforementioned Zhang Jingyin and the diagonal You Yantai were able to score with high decisiveness. I think they were really strong.
However, in the final fifth set, they managed to pull through thanks to some mistakes at crucial moments, but the match showed us how fearsome China's high-potential players can be when they function properly.
Today, Japan was really saved by "Miyaura Dai Sensei", and Captain Ishikawa stepped up a gear from the 4th set, and setter Sekita, who managed to recover with the help of those two, did a great job. It was also exciting that he was taken down midway, but came back from the 4th set and scored a powerful quick at the end.
Ran Takahashi's serve was also great, but today there were many blocks. I'm also concerned about Nishida's condition. Which team will Coach Blanc go for in the next match against the Netherlands?
I would have liked to win 3-0 or 3-1, but I managed to win and I'm really glad that I was able to avoid the worst case scenario of losing and losing a lot of points in the world rankings. It also means that I've secured a place in the final round in Poland (of course, I'll be there as I live in Poland!).
Our next opponent, the Netherlands, is lower ranked, but there is no doubt that they will be a formidable opponent with their star player Nimir, so I hope that they can use this experience to make the match against the Netherlands an easier one to watch (laughs).
Now we're just one win away from 10 in a row! Go Nippon!!
How to watch Nations League 2023
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Photo: FIVB
Photo book "CATCH ××× DREAM" featuring Ryujin Nippon's three players Ishikawa, Takahashi, and Nishida will be released on June 5th! ↓
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