Vietnam upset S. Korea in Hangzhou Asiad women's volleyball thriller

Xinhua
02 Oct 2023, 02:06 GMT+10

HANGZHOU, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam upset South Korea 3-2 while China and Japan eased past their respective opponents in the women's volleyball preliminary round at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Sunday.

In Pool C, Vietnam recovered from two sets down to stun South Korea 16-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-22, 15-11.

Vietnam spiker Tran Thi Thanh Thuy got a game-high 24 points, while Kang So-hwi led South Korea with 23 points.

It was South Korea's second loss to Vietnam within 40 days, following their previous encounter at the Asian Women's Volleyball Championship in August.

South Korea, winner of the Asian Games volleyball tournament in 2014 and bronze medalists in 2018, are widely considered a stronger side than Vietnam, but the latest world rankings have Vietnam sitting one place above South Korea in 39th.

China and Japan, the other two traditional powerhouses of Asian women's volleyball, met little resistance in Sunday's action.

China took a 25-9, 25-9, 25-9 victory over India in Pool A in only 57 minutes.

"In the last two sets I decided to give my bench players some chances to warm up," said China head coach Cai Bin.

"We'll adjust our form as we face the Asian sides," he added, after China finished their Olympic qualifiers last Sunday.

In Pool D, Japan smashed Afghanistan 25-2, 25-0, 25-5 in 43 minutes.

Also on Sunday, Thailand won 3-1 over Chinese Taipei, and Kazakhstan beat Hong Kong (China) 3-0.

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