Bangkok, Thailand – The 33rd SEA Games Men’s Volleyball Tournament sprang to life at Huamark Indoor Stadium on Saturday, with hosts Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam all opening their campaigns in emphatic fashion, each registering important early victories in the biennial sporting spectacle.
World No.59 Thailand, champions of the 2023 AVC Challenge Cup in Chinese Taipei and former eight-time SEA Games gold medallists, showed resilience and composure as they rallied from a first-set loss to subdue a spirited Singapore in four hard-fought sets, 22-25, 25-15, 25-18, 25-20 in Pool A.
Left-handed opposite hitter and captain Amornthep Khonhan combined seamlessly with Chaiwat Thungkham, with both players tallying 15 points apiece, while hard-attacking Anurak Phanram chipped in 14. Singapore’s Jordan Ryan Wong led all scorers for his side with 17 points, including 14 attacks, in a valiant losing effort.
“I believe our performance today fell short of the level we had achieved in training. Our younger teammates were under considerable pressure as they tried to make the most of every opportunity, which affected their usual rhythm. As team captain, I did my best to encourage everyone to fight with determination and stay focused on their own game. We will take the lessons from this match and aim to improve in our next encounter against Laos. Reaching the final round is never easy because every team is strong. So, we must continue to give our very best,” Amornthep said after the match.
Thailand asserted control across most facets of the contest, outscoring Singapore in attacks (54–43), blocks (14–9) and service aces (6–2), although Singapore benefited marginally from opponent errors (24–23).
In the other Pool A encounter, Vietnam cruised past Laos in straight sets, 25-13, 25-20, 25-14. Laos were making their first SEA Games appearance in 16 years, having last competed at the 2009 Vientiane Games on home soil.
Pham Van Hiep topped the scoring charts with 14 points from 13 attacks and one block for Vietnam, while Tran Duy Tuyen and Nguyen Ngoc Thuan provided solid support with eight points each. Aling Phaengvanhdy was the lone Laotian player to reach double figures, finishing with 10 points.
Earlier in Pool B, the Philippines, in pursuit of a historic first SEA Games gold medal, cleared their opening hurdle with a composed straight-set victory over a resilient Myanmar, 25-23, 25-20, 25-21.
The Filipinos initially struggled to settle, as Myanmar repeatedly found ways past the block with clever off-the-hands attacks, surging to a five-point lead at 21-16 in the opening set. Showing grit and maturity, the Philippines clawed their way back to level at 22-22 before snatching the thrilling set 25-23.
The second set developed into a seesaw battle until opposite hitter Leo Ordiales caught fire, sparking a decisive 4-0 run with three points, two of them from service aces, to break a 16-all deadlock. The momentum carried the Philippines through to a 25-20 win.
Maintaining their rhythm in the third set, the Philippines closed out the match 25-21, sending a large crowd of their supporters inside the stadium into raptures.
Captain Bryan Bagunas led all scorers with 18 points from 16 attacks, one block and one ace, while Ordiales and Mark Jesus Espejo contributed 10 points apiece. Myanmar’s Ya Htike Wai paced his team with 13 points, all from attacks.
With the victory, world No.80 Philippines moved a step closer to the highly-anticipated semifinals. Pool B features only three teams, with the top two advancing after the round-robin phase. The Philippines will next face reigning and consecutive three-time champions Indonesia on December 16 at 12.30pm local time, while Myanmar meet Indonesia on December 15 at 10.00am.
The Philippines’ confidence is buoyed by a strong showing at this year’s FIVB Men’s World Championship on home soil, where they opened with a 3-0 win over Tunisia, stunned African champions Egypt 3-1, and narrowly fell to Asian silver medallists Iran in a gripping five-set encounter.
Meanwhile, Myanmar, still in search of their first win at the 33rd SEA Games Women’s Volleyball Tournament, finished seventh after a straight-set loss to Singapore (20-25, 22-25, 18-25) in the 5th–7th classification match earlier on Saturday.
Following that win, Singapore will face Malaysia in the 5th–6th place playoff on Sunday, December 14, at 10.00am local time.
Sunday’s schedule also features the women’s semifinals, with Vietnam meeting the Philippines at 12.30pm, followed by reigning 14-time champions Thailand taking on Indonesia at 3.00pm.
The day’s fourth match will see Singapore square off against Vietnam in the men’s Pool A round-robin preliminaries.