In a thrilling showdown on Saturday, China defeated the 14th-ranked Netherlands 3-1 at the FIVB Men's Nations League stop in Xi'an, located in the Chinese mainland's Shaanxi Province. This win marks a dramatic turnaround after the Dutch had previously swept China 3-0 in earlier encounters.
China entered the match on a high note after a solid 3-0 victory over Serbia on Thursday, while the Netherlands was still catching its breath following a 3-1 win over Türkiye the previous evening. Netherlands coach Joel Banks explained the challenge his team faced: "We went back to the hotel late, and hopefully everyone could relax, but it was 1:30 a.m., we were still working with physio."
The game got off to an intense start with both teams hungry for an early lead. However, a string of unforced errors by the Dutch gave China a major advantage, netting them nine free points and helping secure the first set 25-19 with four impressive aces. Building on this momentum, China stormed ahead in the second set with a swift 17-12 run before closing it at 25-20.
The Netherlands rallied in the third set, igniting an 8-8 tie before launching a 10-2 burst that saw them take the set 25-13. Yet, China adjusted their approach in the fourth set. Li Yongzhen emerged as a standout, contributing four crucial blocks and leading his team to a 25-17 win. Coach Vital Heynen summed up the performance: "In the first two sets, we did very good spiking and serving, really bad blocking and defense, but amazingly, we made no mistakes in serving and spiking. The third set was just terrible. And it's fantastic that we came back in the fourth set and played better in block and defense." This crucial victory also bumped China's world ranking up to 18th.
With more nail-biting action on the horizon, China is set to face Türkiye on Sunday, while the Netherlands will take on Japan and Poland will battle Serbia. This win is not just a score on the board but a powerful boost of confidence and a signal of exciting times ahead in the tournament! 🏐😎
Reference(s):
China beat Netherlands for back-to-back FIVB Men's Nations League wins
cgtn.com
