AUSTRALIA JOIN THAILAND, KAZAKHSTAN AND INDIA IN SEMI-FINALS OF “PRINCESS CUP” TOURNAMENT

Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, May 15, 2018 – Hosts Thailand will strut their stuff against Kazakhstan and India go up against Australia in the semi-finals of “Princess Cup” 20th Est Cola South East Asian Women’s U17 Volleyball Championship at the Nakhon Pathom Sports Centre Gymnasium on Wednesday.

In their last match of the pool preliminaries on Tuesday, Thailand mercilessly crushed Australia in a totally lop-sided battle 25-7 25-11 25-16 to capture the Pool A top spot with 9 points from three straight wins, while Australia finished second in the pool, scoring 6 points from 2 wins against 1 loss.

“I am quite satisfied with my team’s performance today. They have shown signs of improvements. Yesterday, my players still got nervous as it was our first match of the tournament. Today we get used to the atmosphere and the competition venue conditions and could bring our full potential. We tried to reduce some easy mistakes and played great defense,” Thailand head coach Chamnan Dokmai said after the match.

Meanwhile, India struggled hard to beat New Zealand with a fantastic 3-2 (25-20 22-25 11-25 25-16 15-8) comeback win to advance to the semi-finals. Winning three times in a row, India, collecting 8 points from three successive wins, stayed at the top of Pool B, while Kazakhstan had 6 points from two wins against one loss to come in second place of the pool. In their last Pool A match on Tuesday, the Kazakhs thrashed Singapore in a lop-sided affair 25-19 25-12 25-12.

“To play Kazakhstan in the semi-finals on Wednesday, I think it is not different from today’s game, but we will not underestimate them. Their players are not so tall. We will do our best to beat them,” Chamnan added.

In the semi-finals oIn Wednesday, India will take on Australia, with Thailand facing Kazakhstan. In the 5th-8th classification. New Zealand will have a rest day as they are due to play Uzbekistan, which had withdrawn their team a few days ahead of the competition, while Malaysia will play Singapore.

“We prepared well for this match and we are very happy to advance to the semi-finals. This team will be the future of Kazakhstan team in the next three years as they are still young and have the height advantage,” Japanese Shuto Koichi, head coach of Kazakhstan, commented after the match.

“It is going to be much more difficult in the next round as we have to play Thailand, which are very strong, so we will study their play. I hope my players will show their best form against the rivals,” he added.

MATCH SCHEDULE
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
11am: 5th-8th playoff: New Zealand v Uzbekistan
2pm: 5th-8th playoff: Malaysia v Singapore
4pm: 1st-4th semi-finals: India v Australia
6pm: Thailand v Kazakhstan

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