China’s women’s volleyball team digs giant hole in FIVB World Championships
China's women's volleyball team is ranked third in the world, but after the first round of the Federation Internationale de Volleyball’s (FIVB) Women’s World Championships they have a 2-3 record, and their two wins will not count in the second round.
China finished in fourth place in their opening round pool. Their two wins came against the Dominican Republic and Canada, both of which were eliminated. In the second round of play, only the games that came against other advancing teams count. That means
that China begins the second round with a 0-3 record.
They currently sit in seventh place in their second round pool, and only six teams advance to the third round. The team’s final position in the second round will determine which spot they play for in the third round. If they claim one of the top two spots
in the pool, they’ll play for the championship. If they finish third or fourth, the best position they can play for in the third round is fifth. For a country that’s ranked third overall, failing to even earn a chance to play for the championship is a failure,
and right now it looks like they may not even get the chance to play for the fifth to eight spots.
China opened the tournament with a match against Turkey, one they should have won, as Turkey ranked 22nd in the world. But stellar coaching by Turkish coach, Mehmet Bedestenlioglu, was key with Turkey playing as a cohesive unit on their way to
a 3-1 victory over the Chinese.
China bounced back with a 3-0 win over Canada, who failed to win any matches in the tournament, but then lost 3-0 to Korea in another shocker to fall to 1-2. Korea was ranked 21st in the world, slightly better than Turkey, but still much further
down the list than China.
“We tried our best,” said China’s coach, Yu Juemin after that match. “I don't think it was anything technical. Korea played perfect tips and won the long rallies. I take full responsibility for the loss.”
It was a similar story in their first loss to Turkey; it wasn’t that China failed to play well, it was that the other team played a perfect game.
Another bounce-back 3-0 win against the Dominican Republic and China’s record was back to even. The Dominicans only won one game in the first round, and it was against Canada.
China had already clinched a spot in the second round by the time their last game against Russia was played, a 3-0 loss to the undefeated Russians. This loss is much more understandable; Russia is the defending champion after all, but they’re still ranked
lower than China at seventh.
Again Juemin credited the other team by saying, “They are one of the strongest teams. Their serves, blocks and attacks put us under great pressure.”
It’s easy for teams to be inspired against stronger teams, but it’s up to those stronger teams to prove their worth in every match. So far China has failed to do that in this tournament, and it doesn’t get easier for them in the second round, which started
on 6 November. So far China has won against Japan, a surprise defeat for the host nation.
However, it’s still very unlikely China will finish in the top two in their pool. For that to happen either Russia or Japan would have to lose three or four games in the second round, and China would have to win all four of their games, and even that wouldn’t
ensure them a top two finish. Finishing third or fourth is much more realistic with Serbia and Korea currently holding down those positions with 2-1 records.
Earning a spot in the fifth to eighth place section of the third round wouldn’t make the tournament successful, but a strong finish is about all the team has left to hope for.
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