Asian Games 2018: Report card on India's Performance in Volleyball as Iran takes Gold in Men's division and China claims Gold in Women's division

Volleyball - Olympics: Day 12
Iran wins Gold in Men's Volleyball

Volleyball for men has been included at the Asian Games since the 1958 edition in Tokyo, Japan. Women's event was introduced from the 1962 edition in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Japan leads the overall table in the Men's event having won 8 Golds, 2 Silvers, and 2 Bronze. South Korea comes second with 3 Golds, 7 Silvers, and 4 Bronze. China occupies the third spot with 3 Golds, 3 Silvers, and 2 Bronze. India occupies 5th spot with a Silver and two Bronze.

In the Women's event, China leads the medals table with 8 Golds, 3 Silvers, and 1 Bronze. Japan occupies the second spot with 5 Golds, 3 Silvers, and 4 Bronze. South Korea comes third with 2 Golds, 8 Silvers, and 4 Bronze. India's best performance was a 6th place finish at the 1982 New Delhi Games.

Report Card: India's Performance in Men's Volleyball - Rating 3/10

Report Card: India's Performance in Women's Volleyball - Rating 3/10


Volleyball Men

FIVB Men's World Olympic Qualification Tournament - Day 4
South Korea won Silver in Men's Volleyball

Gold Medal Match

Iran dished a World class performance by thrashing South Korea in straight sets to claim the Gold. Sharifi with 13 spikes and Ghafour with 12 wreaked havoc on the Korean side. Seyedmohammad of Iran forced 6 blocks to create confusion in the Korean attack. Jiseok Jung of Korea was their only effective attacker with 11 spikes.

Iran (8) defeated South Korea (21) 25-17, 25-22, 25-21. (IRN - Amir Ghafour 41 pts, Morteza Sharifi 32; KOR - Jiseok Jung 33).

Bronze Medal Match

https://www.fivb.org/Vis2009/Images/GetImage.asmx?No=67446&type=Press&maxSize=920
Chinese Taipei won Bronze in Men's Volleyball (Image Courtesy: FIVB)

Chienchen Chen, captain of Chinese Taipei displayed an all-around performance to help Taipei take the Bronze overcoming Qatar. Chen had 11 spikes and 5 blocks with a reception percentage of 90% of the opponent's serve. Mubarak kept Qatar in the hunt with 16 spikes and 3 blocks. Taipei coach Chen Yuan was pleased with his team's effort and spoke to the media that "the team was able to reap the rewards of hard work".

Chinese Taipei (37) defeated Qatar (35) 25-22, 25-23, 17-25, 25-16. (TPE - Hungmin Liu 59, Chienchen Chen 49, Tsunghsuan Wu 45; QAT - Mubarak Hammad 63, Renan Ribiero 52, Belal Abunabot 43).

Semi-Finals

Sungmin Moon of Korea affected 18 spikes and was supported by Kwangjin (14 spikes) and Jaeduck (13 spikes), as a power-packed South Korea overwhelmed a competitive Taipei to earn a ticket to the Gold medal match.

South Korea (21) defeated Chinese Taipei (37) 20-25, 25-20, 25-16, 20-25, 15-12. (KOR - Kwangjin Jeon 49, Jiseok Jung 48, Sungmin Moon 47, Minho Choi 40; TPE - Chienchen Chen 53, Hongjie Liu 49, Hungmin Liu 47, Yihuei Lin 43).

Amir Ghafour spiked his way past the Qatari defense, with 16 spikes amassing 31 attacking points. The defense of Seyedmohammad and Ali Shafiei proved strong for the Qatari's to penetrate as they scored 31 points through Blocks. Mirsaeid was exceptional as he set up the Iranian attack beautifully with different combinations to bamboozle the Qatarian blockers.

Iran (8) defeated Qatar (35) 25-23, 25-19, 25-18. (IRN - Amir Ghafour 47, Ali Shafiei 43, Seyedmohammad Mousavieraghi 40; QAT - Mubarak Hammad 40).

Quarter-Finals

Iran (8) defeated China (20) 27-25, 25-20, 25-21. (IRN - Amir Ghafour 42, Milad Ebadipour 36; CHN - Chen Zhang 33).

Chinese Taipei (37) defeated Saudi Arabia (50) 22-25, 25-19, 25-8, 25-23. (TPE - Hungmin Liu 53, Hongjie Liu 48, Yihuei Lin 42; KSA - Abdulrahman 49, Oman Mansour 44).

South Korea (21) defeated Indonesia (41) 25-22, 25-18, 25-18. (KOR - Sungmin Moon 35, Jiseok Jung 32, Kwangjin Jeon 31, Minho Choi 30; INA - Rivan Nurmulki 39, Rendy Febriant 34).

Qatar quelled the challenge of Japan with a spirited display to win 3-2 and enter the semis. Both teams were exceptional with their blocking techniques in a riveting encounter.

Qatar (35) defeated Japan (12) 25-18, 26-28, 25-21, 22-25, 24-22. (QAT - Mubarak Hammad 90, Ndir Sadikh 70, Renan Ribiero 67, Ibrahim 64; JPN - Shunsuke Chijiki 91, Takuya Takamatsu 75).

Matches involving India

I
India finished in 12th place at the 2018 Asian Games (Image Courtesy: The Indian Express)

India dished out their worst performance at this year's game to finish 12th at the Asian Games. They lost to World no. 78 Myanmar in their classification match. Myanmar's captain Aung Thu provided an inspirational performance with 29 spikes and 24 shots to collect 67 attack points.

With the third set tied 25-25, Ranjit Singh failed a dig from Aung Thu's spike which was immediately followed by a block from Thwin Zin which handed the third set to Myanmar. In the final set, both teams were tied 12-12, when Prabagaran and Ranjit were unable to retrieve Aung Thu's spike which tilted the lead in favor of Myanmar. Akhin pulled one back through a spike to make it 14-13 but, a service error from Ukkarapandian gifted the match to Myanmar.

Classification Match 11-12 - Myanmar (78) defeated India (38) 25-21, 18-25, 27-25, 15-25, 15-13. (MYA - Aung Thu 84, Myo Min 55, Do Mae Ne Ko 55; IND - Prabagaran 65, Vinit Kumar 49, Akhin Gopala 48).

Even though Akhin Gopala produced 6 blocks, Murad Jehan and Aimal Khan pummeled India with breathtaking attacks to hand Pakistan a sensational victory over arch-rivals India.

7th–12th quarterfinals - Pakistan (50) defeated India (38) 21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-23. (PAK - Murad Jehan 75, Aimal Khan 73; IND - Jerome Vinith Charles 53, Deepesh Kumar Sinha 49).

Japanese captain Hideomi Fukatsu scored three aces from his service as India found it hard against the 12th placed team in the world. Shinsuke with 25 and Prabagaran with 21 were the top attackers for both teams.

Classification 1-12 - Japan (12) defeated India (38) 25-23, 25-22, 23-25, 25-20. (JPN - Shunsuke Chijiki 66, Takuya Takamatsu 55, Naoya Takano 52; IND - Prabagaran 53, Jerome Vinith Charles 47, Akhin Gopala 40).

Group Stage

India (38) defeated Hong Kong (78) 27-25, 25-22, 25-19. (IND - Prabagaran 43, Akhin Gopala 33, Gurinder Singh 30; HKG - Chun Hin Man 34).

Qatar (35) defeated India (38) 25-15, 25-20, 25-20. (QAT - Mubarak Hammad 43, Ndir Sadikh 36, Renan Ribiero 33, Ibrahim 30; IND - Jerome Vinith Charles 50, Prabagaran 42).

India got their defense organized as they showed great blocking prowess to overpower the Maldives. Deepesh Kumar and Karthick Ashok were crucial in getting the blocks for the Indian team.

India (38) defeated Maldives (78) 25-12, 25-21, 25-17. (IND - Prabagaran 30; MDV - Huzam Ali 41, Naseem Adam 30).

Other Important Matches

Pakistan's superior blocking ability unsettled the strong Chinese attack to lose the playoff semifinal. China after a comfortable first set fought hard to lose the second and claim the third before losing the last two sets. This is China's worst-ever performance at the Asian Games.

7th–10th semifinals - Pakistan (50) defeated China (20) 17-25, 28-26, 28-30, 25-19, 18-16. (PAK - Aimal Khan 88, Muneer Khan 51; CHN - Liye Li 97, Yuanbo Li 55).

Both teams displayed an excellent blocking ability pertaining to their physical nature. Kyrgyzstan prevailed in a thrilling 5 setter to upstage an experienced Kazakh team.

Playoffs - Kyrgyzstan defeated Kazakhstan (35) 27-29, 25-20, 23-25, 25-23, 15-7. (KGZ - Onolbek Kanybek 68, Nurmukhammed Toktoev 46; KAZ - Maxim Michshenko 66, Mikhail Ustinov 53).

Group Stage

Vietnam (78) defeated China (20) 25-23, 26-24, 19-25, 22-25, 21-19. (VIE - Thanh Thuan Tu 63, Thanh Hac Le 48; CHN - Jingyi Wang 62, Yuantai Yu 55, Zhejia Zhang 53).

Myanmar (78) defeated Kazakhstan (35) 17-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-18. (MYA - Aung Thu 53, Myo Min 41; KAZ - Maxim Michshenko 43).

Saudi Arabia (50) defeated Indonesia (41) 25-23, 16-25, 25-19, 25-22. (KSA - Oman Mansour 47, Ibrahim Ali 46, Abdulrahman 46; INA Rivan Nurmulki 57, Rendy Febriant 57).

Final Standings

1 - Iran, 2 - South Korea, 3 - Chinese Taipei, 4 - Qatar, 5 - Japan, 6 - Indonesia, 7 - Thailand, 8 - Pakistan, 9 - China, 10 - Saudi Arabia, 11 - Myanmar, 12 - India, 13 - Sri Lanka, 14 - Vietnam, 15 - Nepal, 16 - Kyrgyzstan, 17 - Kazakhstan, 18 - Mongolia, 19 - Hong Kong, 20 - Maldives.

Volleyball Women

Olympics Day 13 - Volleyball
China wins Gold in Women's Volleyball

Gold Medal Match

China showed their class through excellent attacks from their captain Ting and Yingying as they steamrolled past Thailand to take the Gold. Thailand was handicapped by the absence of their star player Chatchu On Moksri who suffered an ankle injury in the quarterfinals.

15th Asian Games Doha 2006 - Mongolia v Thailand
Thailand won Silver in Women's Volleyball

China (1) defeated Thailand (16) 25-19, 25-17, 25-13. (CHN - Ting Zhu 63, Yingying Li 43, Xinyue Yuan 41; THA - Wilavan Apinyapong 34, Ajcharaporn Kongyot 32).

Bronze Medal Match

South Korea dished out an excellent combination of attack and defense to thrash Japan to claim the Bronze. Korean captain Yeonkoung Kim was the star of the match with 29 kill-points. Japan found it hard to penetrate past the block of Jaeyeong and Hyojin.

Cuba v South Korea - FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup Japan 2015
South Korea won Bronze in Women's Volleyball

South Korea (10) defeated Japan (6) 25-18, 21-25, 25-15, 27-25. (KOR - Yeonkoung Kim 84, Jaeyeong Lee 78; JPN - Yuki Ishii 77, Yurie Nabeya 57).

Semi-Finals

Thailand meted a superb display of a quick combination of attacks with plenty of variety which made life difficult for the Korean defense. The reception from Wilavan and tricky set-ups by Nootsara were simply brilliant as they knocked the brilliant Korean side.

Thailand (16) defeated South Korea (10) 25-15, 25-20, 20-25, 25-22. (THA - Pimpichaya Kokram 61, Onuma Sittirak 49, Pleumjit Thinkaow 46; KOR - Yeonkoung Kim 74, Hyojin Yang 58).

China proved why they are the World no.1 team, with an authoritative display against the World no. 6 Japan. Ting, Yingying, and Xinyue provided an impenetrable defense for the Japanese attackers to break.

China (1) defeated Japan (6) 25-22, 25-10, 25-20. (CHN - Xinyue Yuan 46, Ting Zhu 40; JPN - Ai Kurogo 44).

Quarter-Finals

Thailand (16) defeated Vietnam (45) 25-23, 25-16, 25-20. (THA - Thatdao Nuekjang 39, Pleumjit Thinkaow 37, Chatchu On Moksri 36, Pimpichaya Kokram 36; VIE - Thi Nga Bui 46, Thi Thanh Thuy Tran 46).

Japan (6) defeated Kazakhstan (21) 25-16, 25-18, 25-21. (JPN - Yuki Ishii 63, Ai Kurogo 54; KAZ - Sana Anarkulova 56).

South Korea (10) defeated Indonesia (66) 25-22, 25-13, 25-18. (KOR - Yeonkoung Kim 54, Hyojin Yang 48, Jaeyeong Lee 46; INA - Aprilia Santini 64, Amalia Nabila 49).

China (1) defeated Philippines (79) 25-15, 25-9, 25-7. (CHN - Xiaotong Liu 41; PHI - Alyja Daphne 44).

Matches involving India

(Image Courtesy: Prokerala)
Indian women finished in 10th place (Image Courtesy: Prokerala)

Taipei with a spike percentage of 27% with breath-taking attacks from Tzuya Chen pulverized the Indian defense to coast along for a comfortable victory to take the 9th spot.

Ninth-place game - Chinese Taipei (55) defeated India (55) 25-21, 25-16, 25-15. (TPE - Tzuya Chen 47, Liyun Chang 38; IND - Nirmala 47, Anusri Ghosh 32).

Eleventh place game - India (55) defeated Hong Kong (66) 25-18, 25-16, 25-13. (IND - Minimol Abraham 53, Nirmala 49; HKG - Sau Mei Yeung 49).

Group Stage

South Korea (10) defeated India (55) 25-17, 25-11, 25-13. (KOR - Jaeyeong Lee 41; IND - Nirmala 38).

Vietnam (45) defeated India (55) 25-18, 25-22, 25-13. (VIE - Thi Thanh Thuy Tran 43, Thi Thuy Dinh 39, Thi Nga Bui 38; IND - Soorya 22).

Kazakhstan (21) defeated India (55) 25-8, 25-19, 25-23. (KAZ - Natalya Akilova 39, Sana Anarkulova 38, Yekaterina Zhdanova 36; IND - Nirmala 44, Anusree 37).

Chinese Taipei (55) defeated India (55) 23-25, 25-21, 18-25, 25-18, 15-13. (TPE - Liyun Chang 61, Chinghsuan Huang 48; IND - Nirmala 83, Minimol Abraham 67).

China (1) defeated India (55) 25-18, 25-19, 25-9.

Other Important Matches

Group Stage

Vietnam (45) defeated Kazakhstan (21) 20-25, 19-25, 29-27, 25-19, 15-7. (VIE - Thi Thanh Thuy Tran 69, Thi Thuy Dinh 65; KAZ - Kristina Anikonova 62, Sana Anarkulova 57).

Chinese Taipei (55) defeated Vietnam (45) 25-13, 19-25, 25-19, 16-25, 15-11. (TPE - Tzuya Chen 78, Chinghsuan Huang 61; VIE - Thi Thanh Thuy Tran 84, Thi Nga Bui 62).

Philippines (79) defeated Hong Kong (66) 25-18, 25-21, 25-22. (PHI - Alyssa Valdez 44, Alyja Daphne 36; HKG - Sau Mei Yeung 44, Wing Lam Pang 37).

Thailand (16) defeated Japan (6) 25-20, 27-25, 25-20. (THA - Chatchu On Moksri 58, Pimpichaya Kokram 54, Wilavan Apinyapong 49; JPN - Miyu Nagaoka 45).

Final Standings

1 - China, 2 - Thailand, 3 - South Korea, 4 - Japan, 5 - Kazakhstan, 6 - Vietnam, 7 - Indonesia, 8 - Philippines, 9 - Chinese Taipei, 10 - India, 11 - Hong Kong.

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