Hanoi, Vietnam, July 21, 2019 – Formidable Vietnam produced a terrific comeback 3-1 (14-25 25-22 25-21 25-14) win against Thailand in the third-place playoff at the 3rd Asian Women’s U23 Volleyball Championship at Gia Lam Gymnasium here on Sunday to keep their bronze medal achieve in the previous edition two years ago at home.
Tran Thi Thanh Thuy chipped in with 16 points from 14 attacks, one block and one ace. Wipawee Sritong led Thailand with 15 points including 11 attacks from 27 attempts, while Thanacha Sooksod made good company to contribute 14 points.
Vietnam fielded six players who clinched bronze medal at the previous edition in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand including Tran Thi Thanh Thuy, who won the Best Outside Spiker there. Thailand, silver medallists at the first two editions, had four players who joined the 2017 squad including powerful hitters Thanacha Sooksod, Tichaya Boonlert and Natthanicha Jaisaen.
Thailand came out in full force in the first set, with Thanacha, coupled with Wipawee, unleashing spectacular attacks, while the host side, cheered on by more than 2,500 home fans packing the competition venue, suffered from errors and a lack of communication when the going got tough. Thailand took the comfortable first set 25-14.
Shrugged off the rust, Vietnam upped their tempo in the second set. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy’s superb scoring run continued as the team’s offensive combinations of Tran Thi Bich Thuy’s effective fast spikes and explosive attacks from Duong Thi Hen and Dang Thi Kim Thanh moved Vietnam ahead with a five-point clear at 6-1. As Thanacha and Wipawee attacked from all angles, Tran Thi Thanh Thuy and Tran Thi Bich Thuy were blocking everything at the net to make the Thais’ blocking attempts more difficult. Vietnam still dominated the game to lead commandingly 24-19, needing only one more point to win the set. Nonetheless, Thailand did not want to give up easily as they blocked, boosted and attacked, hoping to make a comeback. Still, the host side were defending brilliantly to foil the tough rivals’ entire efforts. Vietnam claimed the second set 25-22, with Tran Thi Thanh Thuy producing an effective mid-court drop to hand the team’s last point.
In the third set, Vietnam led initially 4-2, but Thailand hit back to level at 14-14. As home fans came to life with their team’s leading, Vietnam were working as a well-oiled machine, making them uncatchable for the visitors and bagged the set 25-21 for a 2-1 advantage.
The rhythm was with Vietnam in the fourth set, which they took command from the beginning to race to an 18-12 lead, courtesy of their defensive resilience and spectacular attacks. The host team stretched the lead to 21-13, while Thailand poured everything they had to get their form back on track but they still were errors-strewn. Vietnam captured the set 25-14, match and the bronze medal, the same performance and the medal they had achieved in Thailand two years ago. Thailand missed the podium for the first time in history to return with the fourth place.
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