Covid-hit Thailand lose to Japan in blow to Olympic hopes
Thailand’s Covid-hit team lost their second successive match in the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Women’s Nations League on Friday, going down 3-0 to Japan in Quezon City, Philippines.
Thailand began the second week of the tournament by beating Canada 3-0 before losing eight players who tested positive for Covid-19. The Thais then lost 3-2 to Poland in the second match on Wednesday.
On Friday, they went down 25-22, 25-16, 25-14 to Japan at the Aranata Coliseum.
Japan now top the standings on 20 points after seven consecutive wins and only three sets dropped in the entire competition. Thailand dropped to seventh place in the 16-team tournament with 12 points.
The Thai women also have one eye on their world ranking. To qualify for their first Olympics in 2024, they will need to be ranked among the top 12 teams in the world. They came into the tournament ranked 19th but have now risen to 14th in the FIVB standings after three wins against Bulgaria, Serbia and China and a loss to Belgium in the first week.
This tournament offers a good opportunity to gather world-ranking points by beating higher-placed teams.
Thailand will play USA in their last match of the second week on Sunday at 2pm.
