◇ 2nd (3rd Japan time) ◇ US Shreveport Bossier City
Japan, which ranked 9th in the world ranking, defeated Germany, which ranked 12th, 3-2 (25-20, 25-22, 15-12) to start the winning streak.
It was a come-from-behind victory. Two sets were taken in advance, but the captain’s outside hitter (OH) Sarina Koga (26 = NEC), middle blocker Erina Ogawa (23 = Toray), Arisa Inoue (27 = Hisamitsu) and others attacked. I stood up and brought it to the final set. In the final set, he persistently overcame the opponent’s attack and made a close battle.
Japan lost the qualifying round for the first time in 25 years at the Tokyo Olympics last summer. Director Masayoshi Manabe (58) returns to participate in the Paris Olympics in 2012. In his first match once morest Korea on the 1st (Japan time 2nd), he won a straight 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-11).
In the Nations League, 16 teams will play 12 games in the qualifying round, and the top 8 teams will advance to the final round.