Picture Credit: Twitter
The India’s men volleyball team’s dream run in the 19th Asian Games ended on Sunday, September 24. The Indian team lost the quarter final clash 0-3 to the world number 5 team, Japan 16-25, 18-25, 17-25. The Indian boys were coming on the back of Chinese Taipei 25-22, 25-22, and 25-21 to make it to the playoffs stage. On the other hand, Japan had defeated Kazakhstan to reserve their spot in the quarterfinals of the continental multi-sport tournament.
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In the first round, both Japan and India fought equally hard, but the former took an early lead and scored 18 points, when India were just at 8 points. Though India fought hard to make a comeback in the game, Japan stayed ahead of their competitors with 21-14 against India and moved ahead to win the first set.
In the second set, India gained a comfortable 4-3 lead against Japan, but the latter quickly made a comeback in the game and equalised the score 5-5. The Japanese team beat India in the second set as they scored 25-18. In the third and final set, Japan continued their winning momentum and won the third set 25-17.
In the next round, where the Indian men will lock horns with the losers of Pakistan and Qatar’s clash in the fifth-sixth qualifications, Japan will encounter China in the semifinal.
