Japanese women stun Brazil to enter final of Volleyball Nations League
The Japanese volleyball team made history by assuring themselves their first medal in the Women's Volleyball Nations League by clinching a thrilling five-set semi-final victory over top seed Brazil in the semi-finals at the Hua Mark Indoor Stadium in Bangkok on Saturday.
The win ended Brazil’s impressive 13-game winning streak and Japan’s jinx of five-set losses to the South American powerhouse.
Japan’s 3-2 victory (26-24, 20-25, 25-21, 22-25, 15-12) was inspired by a stellar performance by 22-year-old Yukiko Wada. Subbing in early for Kotona Hayashi, Wada led Japan with 21 points, tying Brazilian star Gabriela Guimarães for top scorer honours. Captain Sarina Koga added 18 points, and Mayu Ishikawa contributed 16, including the match-winning block-out swing. Airi Miyabe was a defensive force with four blocks, two of which came in the decisive fifth set.
World No. 6 Japan will face Italy in the gold medal match on Sunday at 8.30pm in Bangkok, while Poland and Brazil will compete for the bronze at 5pm.
“Japan’s defence was exceptional, and we struggled with our counterattacks and serves. It’s frustrating, but we need to regroup for tomorrow’s match,” Brazil’s middle blocker, Ana Carolina Da Silva, said of the loss.
Japanese middle blocker Airi Miyabe expressed her pride and optimism: “We’ve learned from our past losses to Brazil. This win is monumental, and I’m so proud of our team’s resilience. Now, we must recover quickly and focus on winning the final.”
In the other semi-final, 2022 champions Italy swept last year’s third-place winner Poland 3-0 (25-18 25-17 25-12) to reach their second final.
Sunday’s final will bring the curtains down on the thrilling Volleyball Nations League season.
