September21September 21, 2026

NAGOYA, Japan – There was no heartbreak this time for China as the reigning champions exacted sweet revenge on Thailand at the 20^th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya on Monday, Sept. 21, at the Park Arena in Komaki.

Much like their title clash at the AVC Continental Cup last month in Tianjin, China, the match was another thriller. 

But this time, it was China, which showed the true heart of a champion, eking out a pulsating 23-25, 25-21, 25-11, 26-28, 15-6 win to advance to the finals and keep their immaculate record intact.

Host Japan, getting solid games from their players, secured the other final slot with a 25-20, 25-22, 25-16 win over South Korea.

Outside hitter Yukiko Wada, Nichica Yakada and Yoshino Sato shattered Korea’s defense time and again with their booming shots, eliciting loud cheers from their supporters.

Wada led all Japanese scorers with 15, while Yakada and Sato had 13 points in another well-balanced attack – thanks to Nanami Seki’s creative plays. She made 26 excellent plays.

China’s outside hitter Mengjie Wu proved to be a scoring machine, firing 29 points on 26 attacks and three aces, arguably the most outstanding performance so far.

She was not alone in their cause as old reliable hitters Aoqian Wang and Yushan Zhuang delivered strong performances, tallying 17 and 16 points, respectively. Setter Zixuan Zhang was equally impressive, posting 22 excellent sets.

Four Thailand players – Pimpichaya Kokram (16 points), Thatdo Nuekjang (16), Sasipaporn Janthawisut (15) and Chatchu-on Moksri (13) – tried to reverse their fortune to no avail.

Meantime, Chinese-Taipei and Indonesia set up a battle for fifth after downing their respective rivals, with the latter scoring a 25-20, 25-21, 25-18 victory at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park.

While Indonesia needed only three sets, Chinese-Taipei was tested to the max before escaping with a thrilling 25-21, 25-23, 22-25,25-27, 15-10 win at the Park Arena Komaki.

It was the first five-set match so far in the competition, and fans enjoyed every spike and dive of both squads.

In the battle for 9^th to 10^th places, Hong Kong, China outlasted Nepal, 25-20, 25-19, 28-26, while the Philippines outclassed Mongolia, 25-13, 25-11, 25-20.

The Philippines and Hong Kong clash for No. 9 on Tuesday, Sept. 22.