Recap of second-day matches of Samila-Chang Beach Volleyball Tournament – Part 1
The 12th Samila-Chang Asian Beach Volleyball Tournament is underway in the city of Songkhla in Thailand.
A total of 46 beach volleyball teams from Asia are fighting the battle of supremacy at the B.P. Samila Beach Hotel. The squad of 46 teams include 22 women’s and 24 men’s duos. The Samila-Chang Asian Beach Volleyball Tournament will offer US$30,000 to the
winners of the competition.
The tournament was officially opened on Sunday, 10th April. Three women’s duos from Thailand earned success on the opening day of the tournament without even putting any effort.
In fact, Singapore sought withdrawal from the tournament just a few days before the start of the competition, which promptly benefitted the Thai teams.
Thailand 1 vs. India 1 2-0 (21-9, 21-3)
The top-seeded pairing of Jarunee Sannok and Usa Tenpaksee from Thailand clashed with India’s Prakasam Premavathi and Chinnasamy Sindhuja on Monday.
The home duo started off with a lot of confidence as they were playing in the presence of local fans. Besides, both these players had a lot of international exposure and they had the ability to deal with the under-dog Indian team anytime.
Tanpaksee was on serve and she supplied great power to her jump-serves. The ball moved like a rocket and devastated the opponents. Likewise, Sannok put her magic in the game. She came up with back-to-back attacks on the challenger side and contributed quick
points. The Indians played with best of their tactics but could not penetrate the killing spikes of home team. First set ended in Thailand’s favour as the home duo posted 21-9 on the board.
The second set was totally a one-sided affair. The Indian team became irresistible and failed to stand the power of strong opponents. The duo of Tenpaksee/Sannon was on fire as they missed no chance to hit the ball in right spot. They greatly hindered the
performance of Indian side and restricted them to a very low score.
The Indian team could only help three points in second set, while the hosts secured the second set as well. The scoreboard showed the final score of 21-3 and declared Thailand as the victorious team. With this particular win, Thailand 1 became the top team
of Pool A. However, there were only two teams in Pool A, both will be headed to the next round.
Thailand 2 vs. Japan 2 (22-20, 21-18)
The match between Thailand 2 and Japan 2 was a close fight. The fourth-seeded Thailand’s Kamoltip Kulna/Varapatsom Radarong had to put up a great effort to dismantle the power of Japanese team, which comprised of Keiko Urata and Junko Komada.
It was the second appearance both teams. Each side was charged-up with a lot of energy and seemed ready for the kill.
The match was opened on a high note. The Japanese team put away some nice volleys. The Japanese players had good physique and tall stature. They demonstrated their mastery skills and hit the ball with a great precision.
On the other hand, the home duo of Kulna/Radarong was equally proficient. They took a little time to settle down in their positions and raised the heavy strike of swift crosscourt shots. The suspense and uncertainty was high on stake as the score soared
up with a narrow gap.
Nonetheless, the Thai pair sparked on the scene and clinched success in opening set by sending 22-20 on board.
The success in first set paved a way for home duo to make further progress in next set. They picked up an early lead and added quick points to put an end to the game. Likewise, Japanese girls were in active mode. They knew that it was their only chance to
survive. They put up a valiant effort and tried to save the second set. The luck was on Thailand’s side. The duo of Kulna/Radarong won the second set at 21-18 and declared match victory. They had defeated the Indian team in the opening match. Hence, Thailand
2 emerged as top team of the Pool D.
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