Korean men’s volleyball, 2 consecutive victories at the Asian Championship
The Korean men’s volleyball team advanced to the round of 12 by finishing first in the group. The national team (ranked 28th in the world) led by coach Lim Do-heon defeated Pakistan (ranked 50th in the world) in the second round of the 2023 AVC (Asian Volleyball Confederation) Championship Group F group stage held at Urmia Al-Ghadir Stadium, Iran on the 21st (hereinafter Korean time). They won the set score 3-1 (26-28, 25-20, 32-30, 25-22). The national team, which won Bangladesh 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-19) on the 20th, finished first in Group F and advanced to the round of 12.
For Korea, Apposite Spiker Heo Soo-Bong (3), Outside Hitters Jeong Ji-Seok (4) and Na Gyeong-Bok (1), Middle Blockers Lim Dong-Hyeok (2) and Kim Kyu-Min (5), Setter Hwang Taek-Eui (6), and Libero Park Kyung-Min started. Korea took a 9-5 lead early in the first set thanks to strong hits from Heo Soo-bong and Jeong Ji-seok. However, Pakistan chased after Ali’s front-and-back onslaught and tied the score at 20-20.
The set flowed to 24-24 deuce. Afterwards, Korea touched the set point first with Lim Dong-hyuk’s blocking goal, but failed to finish the set. Na Kyung-bok’s serve and opponent Ali’s exquisite serve score eventually gave up the first set. Entering the second set, Korea took an early 5-2 lead thanks to Jeong Ji-seok’s strong blow. Pakistan again tied the game 10-10. The tight battle for leadership continued to 15-15. Afterwards, Korea took the lead with Jeong Ji-seok’s blow, and after a technical timeout, Jeong Han-yong’s blow followed by Heo Soo-bong’s two front-and-back strikes made it 20-17. In particular, Park Kyung-min’s Digg shined when scoring 20 points. With the flow in hand, Korea won the set with Lim Dong-hyuk and Jung Ji-seok’s consecutive blocking goals followed by Jung Ji-seok’s strong blow and opponent’s mistake. 토토사이트 The score was 25-20.
3 sets. It was a fierce battle from the beginning to the middle. Both Korean and Pakistani players knew that a victory could be directly linked to winning the 3rd set. The close match continued to 20-20. After Pakistan took a 1-point lead thanks to Ali’s goal, Korea equalized with Jeong Ji-seok’s touchout. Heo Soo-bong pulled off a 23-22 comeback with consecutive back attacks. With Hwang Taek-eui’s blow, Korea advanced to the set point 24-23, but Pakistan pushed the game to deuce with Ali’s blow.
In the deuce, Pakistan scored first and Korea followed suit. On 27-28, South Korea took a 29-28 lead with Jung Ji-seok’s left-handed hit followed by Heo Soo-bong’s back attack. After Ali’s goal tied the score, Korea took the lead again 30-29 thanks to Jeong Han-yong’s goal. Afterwards, Jung Ji-seok’s serve was unfortunately out, but the opponent’s serve was also a mistake. The rally that followed was Hwang Taek-eui’s direct kill. Korea managed to win the set. 32-30 was engraved on the scoreboard.
4 sets. It was tight until 12-12. After that, the initiative was Korea. After the opponent’s serve, Lim Dong-hyuk scored in the center. After Jeong Han-yong’s strong blow, Heo Soo-bong and Lim Dong-hyuk scored consecutive blocks and ran to 17-13. It was the moment when Korea seized the victory. Jeong Ji-seok made a clean pipe attack, then came up to the front and delivered a left-handed blow to announce a 19-16 lead, and Heo Soo-bong once again blocked the score to make it 20-16.
Korea, who had found time to spare, approached the victory with Jeong Ji-seok’s left-handed blow, 23-19. However, Pakistan chased after it by scoring 3 points in a row. At the moment of crisis, Heo Soo-bong’s back attack was out. As the score was about to be tied, the Korean bench asked for a challenge and caught the opponent’s net touch. The score was 24-22. Reaching the match point, Korea decided the victory with Jung Ji-seok’s pipe attack.
Korea made a change by introducing Lim Dong-hyuk as a middle blocker in this tournament. This is hitting. This is a formation coach Lim Do-heon has prepared with hidden cards. With Lim Dong-hyuk’s input, Korea gained strength from its powerful offense and even its serve. Lim Dong-hyuk is a great help to the national team with his blocking ability as well as his fast break. This is why the remaining schedule of this tournament is expected.