Asian Games 2023: Indian men's volleyball team lose quarter-final to Japan; medal dreams come to an end
Indian men's volleyball team's stint in the Asian Games 2023 has come to an end after they lost to Japan in the quarterfinal. The Indian team started their campaign on a good note.
They registered two back-to-back victories, against South Korea and Chinese Taipei, to enter the quarterfinals where they could have faced either Japan or Kazakhstan.
The match was ultimately decided between Japan and India and would have acted as a ticket to enter the semifinal for the winners. However, India stumbled against the World No. 5 side, which ended the team's medal hopes in the Asian Games.
On the other hand, Japan entered the semifinal with a scoreline of 25-16, 25-18, and 25-17, defeating India in straight sets.
Japan executed pinpoint serves that left India finding it difficult to retrieve the ball, skillfully countered India's spikes, and mounted a challenging defense at the net.
India somehow managed to string together a brief three-point sequence in the opening set and a four-point surge at the outset of the second. However, Japan persisted in overpowering their opponents, securing the opening sets with scores of 25-16 and 25-18.
What happened after Japan and India reached a deadlock point in the Asian Games volleyball match?
In the first half of the third set, Ashwal and LM Manoj gave promising performances with a couple of well-executed blocks and attacking points, leaving the sides at 12-12.
Yet, Japan swiftly retrieved control and got a ticket for the semifinals, maintaining their rigorous momentum. Kazayuki Takahashi was surely the man to watch out for.
This top-six clash took place at China Textile Sports City Centre Gymnasium on Sunday and was a disappointment for India. Although the Indian team hoped for good results with two consecutive victories to start with, it was not their day to cheer on Sunday.
It shall be noted that Japan sent their second-string team to vie in the prestigious tournament, the Asian Games 2023, but India failed to carry on their dominance.