Vietnam volleyball team beat Thailand after 10 years

Thanks to determination and a desire to assert themselves, the Vietnamese men's volleyball team had a historic 3-2 victory over Thailand on the evening of July 30 at the ongoing Asian Championship in Indonesia.

Exactly 10 years ago, at the 2007 SEA Games in Thailand, with the brilliant performance of "bomber" Ngo Van Kieu and many other famous names, the Vietnamese men's team defeated Thailand 3-0 in the semi-finals but lost to Indonesia in the finals.

Since then, while Thai volleyball has gradually stabilized and asserted its strength, Vietnamese men's volleyball has not been able to bounce back, gradually falling due to unstable performance and poor competitive mentality. This is most evident in the SEA Games matches, the Vietnamese men's team has been hovering around third or fourth place, only in the 2015 SEA Games in Singapore reaching the final but losing to Thailand. A complete defeat in terms of technique, tactics and competitive mentality,

It was that failure that made those responsible for Vietnamese volleyball determined to do it again, both rejuvenating the force and inviting back veterans who had made good contributions in the past. A typical example is the role of Ngo Van Kieu and a group of players in their prime such as Thanh Thuan, Thai Hung, Hoang Thuong, Van Duc... creating a stable framework. Thanks to determination combined with a desire to assert themselves, this evenly talented group had a miraculous 3-2 victory over Thailand on the evening of July 30 at the Asian Championship taking place in Indonesia.

Although coach Phung Cong Hung and his team had a hard-fought victory, after being sublime in the first stage and unexpectedly leading 2-0 (25/19 and 25/16), they showed a lack of concentration, allowing Thailand to win back 25/21 and 25/16 to equalize the score 2-2. Only with strength and precision in each shot, net blocking and first pass did the Vietnamese boys win the decisive game 15/10 to gain the right to compete in the 9th place match with Qatar tomorrow, July 31.

This is an encouraging victory for the Vietnamese men's volleyball team, opening up hope for the SEA Games. But don't be too optimistic because Thailand will definitely strengthen after the loss. In addition, Indonesia also showed strong progress when entering the top 4 of Asia after defeating Iran. That is a formidable opponent for the Vietnamese team.

According to TNO