Saturday marked the commencement of the 19th Asian Games Women’s Volleyball Competition, and it was a day of expected triumphs as favourite teams proved their mettle, brushing off lower-ranked sides with convincing wins. The matches were held at Deqing Sports Center Gymnasium and Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium.
Japan, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, and Chinese Taipei marked the opening day with emphatic straight-set victories against their respective adversaries. However, the highlight of the day was DPR Korea overcoming a resilient Indian team in a dramatic four-setter, making a notable comeback with a 3-1 win in their Pool A opener at Deqing Sports Center Gymnasium.
Vietnam effortlessly subdued Nepal in a lopsided 3-0 battle (25-4, 25-16, 25-13), celebrating a smooth victory in their Hangzhou Asian Games debut. Following this, Chinese Taipei demonstrated their dominance over Mongolia with an impressive 25-19, 25-12, 25-8 win in their first Pool B match, echoing their previous straight-set triumph at the 22nd Asian Senior Women’s Championship in Thailand in September.
Meanwhile, at Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium, world No.9 Japan secured a seamless 3-0 (25-17, 25-10, 25-15) victory over Hong Kong China in their Pool D opener. The face-off between Kazakhstan and Afghanistan was decidedly one-sided, with Kazakhstan breezing past their competitors 3-0 (25-4, 25-5, 25-3).
The excitement continues as the pool play progresses. Thailand is slated to play against Chinese Taipei in Pool B, and China will initiate their Asian Games title defense against India in Pool A at Deqing Sports Center Gymnasium. Concurrently, Korea will face Vietnam in Pool C at Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Gymnasium, where Kazakhstan will also meet Hong Kong China and Japan will engage Afghanistan in Pool D matches.
Pool A
Pool B
Pool C
Pool D
