Volleyball update: Review of third day of AVC Continental Beach Volleyball Cup in Chinese Taipei (Part 1)
The AVC Continental Cup Sub Zonal Tournament of Eastern Asia completed its run in Kaohsiun, Chinese Taipei from December 24-26, 2010. Pool B Teams from hosts Chinese Taipei, Japan and Macau (CHN) hit the podium to clinch berths in the AVC Zonal Tournament.
The first day of the tournament featured competitions of Chinese Taipei vs. Macau. The home duos outplayed guest teams in both male and female categories. Chinese Taipei finished the first day with a score of 4-0 and successfully covered the Sub Zonal stage
of AVC Continental Cup. Moreover, the success on first day enabled Chinese Taipei to play against the winner of second day, Japan.
Japanese duos faced off Macau’s teams on the second day of the tournament. Macau was strongly tagged as underdogs in the tournament. Macau’s squad was mostly comprised of young and inexperienced players. They failed to stand the heavy strike of skilled Japanese
squad and gave way to Japan’s better status in the tournament. Japan finished with similar score of 4-0 and booked a slot in the Zonal Tournament of AVC Continental Cup. Chinese Taipei and Japan rose up as winners from Pool B of Sub Zonal Tournament. Earlier
on, China and Hong Kong qualified for AVC Zonal Tournament from Pool A. The qualifiers of Zonal Tournament will now aim for a slot in 2012 London Olympic Games.
Third day of the tournament brought successful teams of the tournament in court. Chinese Taipei contested their abilities with strong Japanese side. It was the real test for both teams. Third day of the tournament featured four matches of female teams and
four matches of men.
First match
Third day play was opened with a close fight between women duos of Japan 2 and Chinese Taipei 1. Japanese side featured Satoko Urata and Takemi Nishibori, while Kou Nai Han and Chang h*i Min represented Chinese Taipei. Both sides had defeated Macau in their
previous matches. Japan opened the match with powerful serves and came strong on opponents. The speedy spikes of Nishibori perfectly landed in hosts half and raised Japanese score. In the meantime, Chinese Taipei resisted to Japan’s movement and hit back on
the same lines. Kou Nai Han responded very well and supplied plenty of power to her shots. The score rose narrowing the margin, as the spectators budded their teams by cheering at the top of their lungs. Chinese Taipei had enormous support of local fans, giving
them a competitive edge.
Somehow, Chinese Taipei dropped a few crucial points and lagged behind in the runs’ race. Japan attacked from different angles and saved important points by superb digging and diving on the sand. They stole the show from home players and hit the finish line.
They secured first set with 21-17 victory over Chinese Taipei.
Loss of the opening set was an eye opener for the local team. The pairing of Kou Nai Han and Chang h*i Min came up with an improved strategy and struggled to cover the deficit. They managed to come up with a good start. Both partners complimented each other
with perfect timing and successfully broke the rhythm of Japanese duo. Japan suffered the set back as Chinese Taipei built strong lead and moved ahead in the game. The arena echoed the uproar of local fans as their team made a dominating comeback. The hard
work paid off and Chinese Taipei hit the equalizer by winning second set at 21-13.
The game entered the third decisive set, while both teams attacked each other aggressively. There was hardly any chance for mistakes in the crucial third set. Japanese team grasped the game plan of the rival side and hit them with more ferocity. Chinese
Taipei lost the momentum and went down on the scoreboard. Japan sparked on the scene with score and pushed Chinese Taipei behind. The 15-point golden set ended in Japan’s favour as they ousted Chinese Taipei with a margin of 7 points (15-8).
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