JAPAN still found a way sans ace spiker Ran Takahashi for its first 2024 Volleyball Men’s Nations League (VNL) Manila leg win at the expense of the Netherlands, 25-18, 25-19, 25-20, on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Two-thirds of Ryujin Nippon’s star trio fired the Asian powerhouse to victory as Yuji Nishida (16 points) and team captain Yuki Ishikawa (15 points) kept Japan’s VNL quarterfinals bid afloat in sixth place at 7-3.
Although one of Japan’s shooting stars may have fallen — for this round of the VNL, at least — Ishikawa stressed that all that matters is that their focus remains laser-sharp.
“Today was an important match for us because we lost against Canada. But we should focus on our team. In the second set, we were playing well. After that, we were (still) playing well. We won 3-0, so it’s important for us,” he said.
“We have to think of our volleyball always even if he (Ran Takahashi) isn’t here. And today, we’re so happy.”
READ: VNL Manila leg cut short for fan favorite Ran Takahashi
As per Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) chief Ramon ‘Tats’ Suzara, Takahashi left the country on Friday morning to recover from a longtime recurring knee injury.
“I hope that (Ran) will come back much better at his game and join the team. It’s not so long before the Olympics, but he’s not in a hurry. We have to keep improving step-by-step for the important games,” Nishida dded.
After putting on 38- then 37-point performances, the Dutch side’s third straight defeat saw its captain and VNL leading scorer Nimir Abdel-Aziz held to a tournament-low seven points. In his stead, Maarten van Garderen topped the scoring column with 10 markers.
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