The Chinese women's volleyball team won three consecutive matches in the first week of the 2023 World League, defeating Brazil, Germany and the Netherlands 3-2, 3-0 and 3-1 respectively, and will welcome the last opponent of the week, Japan. It can be seen from the first three games that the Chinese team has made some progress in passing and defense, Li Yingying, Wang Mengjie and Wang Yuanyuan are in good condition, and the rest of the main players are not in excellent condition, but they are still stable. In recent days, the official media has praised the women's volleyball team's three-game winning streak, but I personally couldn't be happy. On the contrary, after watching the first three games, there was even some concern.
First of all, the substitutes of the Chinese team are lackluster on the field.
Xu Xiaoting and Zheng Yixin were the first substitutes to be sent on the field, and in several two-point tactics, Xu Xiaoting was very nervous, although Zheng Yixin got a few points for a sneak attack, but the cooperation between them was not tacit; Although Zheng Yixin seems to have completed the tactical task, the No. 2 back flying ball is not good. And yesterday's Sino-Dutch battle, when she appeared in the fourth game as a starting receiver, once she was focused on guarding by her opponents, her attack was almost invisible. The tactical arrangement of the Chinese team in this game also has problems, the previous running type should have a deputy attacker as cover, and the second point is played. But Zheng Yixin's attack has basically become a simple No. 2 back fly, similar to a secondary attack, which is not easy for her to get off the ball when she is at a height disadvantage.
Zhonghui also got a chance to play in the Sino-Dutch battle, but his performance was even more disappointing, especially after appearing as the starting main attack in the third game, almost did not find his form in the entire game, shy in attack, and only dared to push if the relationship between man and the ball was slightly imperfect.
The performance of the three main substitutes on the field can't help but make me worry that if the main team member suffers an injury, the level of the Chinese team may drop a lot.
Secondly, the opponent did not show real strength and form.
If Germany and the Netherlands are limited in their own and it is reasonable for China to beat them, it should have been exciting to beat Brazil, which is stronger than ours. However, Brazil fielded a very young squad in the first week of the competition, especially in the main attacking line, not only captain Gabi was absent, but also several national team regulars in the Tokyo Olympic cycle, replaced by Anna, who was born after 2000. Christina and Julia. Bergman, the two players who took over the position, Kisi and Tenara, were also post-zeros. Because the players are relatively young, their performance is far less delicate and stable than the original Brazilian team, with fluctuating passes and many mistakes. Therefore, the victory over such a Brazilian team does not say much. In fact, when we faced the Netherlands, who finished twelfth in last year's World Championships, we also stumbled, especially in terms of passes, completely missing the stability of the first game against Brazil, not only with a low rate of place, but also with many direct mistakes. This shows that the Chinese team's passing and defensive progress in the first game still needs more games to test, especially the test of strong teams with complete lineups.
Third, we didn't launch a single new person.
Objectively speaking, the Chinese team did not introduce a single new person in the first week of the competition. Even Xu Xiaoting and Zhonghui, who played for the first time for the national first team, are 25- and 26-year-old middle-generation players, and according to the general rules of Chinese players, they are about to usher in a downhill period in their careers. On the other hand, our opponents, half of Brazil's starting line-up is post-zero. As an important opponent of the Chinese women's volleyball team at the Paris Olympics, the Brazilian team has completed the replacement of the old and the new, and they will only become stronger for a long time to come.
Tonight, we will welcome a strong Japanese team. They may fight the main team alone, their hard strength is not as good as the Chinese team, but their substitute lineup is all top-notch. When they rotate their players, our Chinese team may not be able to win. Japan is also an important opponent of the Chinese women's volleyball team at the Paris Olympics, and if we keep facing twelve with seven players, we are likely to fall into the top eight traps of the world's three major competitions and never break through the eight-in-four barrier. We look forward to our coaching team and our platoon management center to realize this as soon as possible and plan ahead.