HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam were defeated 17-25, 17-25, 17-25 by Thailand in their first match of the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship Japan 2018 on Thursday.

The championship was held at the Nakhon Pathom Province Gymnasium, Thailand.

Việt Nam played without their key players, including Phạm Thị Kim Huệ (retired), Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hoa (retired) and Linh Chi (injured). This weakened the team against Thailand, who won the Southeast Asian Games last month in Malaysia.

Việt Nam’s Lê Thanh Thúy and Trần Thi Thanh Thúy delivered a stellar performance, scoring the most points for the team.

On the host side, Ajcharaporn was the top scorer with 14 points, while captain Pleumjit Thinkaow contributed 11 points. Under their leadership, the Thais set the pace in the first set and held it steady in the second. They continued to be a mighty force in the third, giving Viet Nam no hopes of winning.

It was Thailand’s second win here. They defeated Iran in straight sets of 25-14, 25-15, 25-13, in their opener on Wednesday.

“I’m not happy with the performance of middle-blocker Bùi Thị Ngà as she did not play well. Her form is a far cry from what it was. She had performed superbly in the previous tournaments,” Việt Nam head coach Irisawa Hidehiro was quoted as saying on asianvolleyball.net.

Hidehiro appreciated Thailand’s performance, saying that they deserved the win.

In another match, Iran suffered their second defeat of 23-25, 11-25, 18-25 to North Korea.

In the second match tonight, Việt Nam will play against North Korea. Hidehiro hoped his team would do their best against the Koreans.

Thailand head coach Danai Sriwacharamaytakul said his team’s performance was satisfactory. Thailand have a rest day today and will compete against North Korea on September 23. — VNS