2018 FIVB World Championship - Japan

  • Man, volleyball world championship is just too long... 1st round, 2nd round, 3rd round, and then you have final 4. It's cruel to have to play 13 games in like 20 days including all the travels, what's the point here?

    You should just watch the annual festive, formerly the World Grand Prix - WGP now the Volleyball Nations League - VNL :lol:


    For the much shorter quadrennial event FIVB has the World Cup, and WGCC plus some serious qualification tournaments.


    “There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.”

  • Japan plays Serbia 9 hours after Brazil-Netherlands...I wonder if we will see some sort of "amicable agreement" to give both what they need.

    Fingers crossed.... let wait and see if some weird scene really happens on court :whistle:


    just keep a note upon this notion!


    “There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.”

  • According to Italian websites, Italy should qualify to the final 6 by winning another 3 sets, so 1 tiebreak loss and another set won, this in case of zero wins in the next matches.


    Edit: it's been confirmed as the case

  • Man, volleyball world championship is just too long... 1st round, 2nd round, 3rd round, and then you have final 4. It's cruel to have to play 13 games in like 20 days including all the travels, what's the point here?

    That's why they called WCH the most difficult volley match. Only the best team can win the title. A dark horse barely stands a chance in such a long series.

  • That's why they called WCH the most difficult volley match. Only the best team can win the title. A dark horse barely stands a chance in such a long series.

    Eh disagree. VNL and Olympics... All the dark horses will never make the playoffs just as it does for world championship.


    Truth be told, world championship is considered a tournament easiest to manipulate because of multiple pools avoiding the top 2,3 and 4 teams at once if you're the host and the chance of a weaker team getting through the final round goes up if they pick up the right draw to fall in such as Japan.

    Favorite players: M: Maxim Mikhaylov, Murilo, Serginho, Aaron Russell, Otavio, Simone Giannelli, Ivan Zaytsev, Tsvetan Sokolov, Michał Kubiak, Mariusz Wlazly, Pawel Zagummy W: Sheilla, Zhu Ting, Natalia, Fe Garay, Fofao, Gabi, Thaisa, Foluke Akinradewo, Wei Qiuyue, Ding Xia, Carli Lloyd, Fabi, Natalia Goncharova, Yuko Sano, Saoris Kimura and Sakoda


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  • I like these long tournaments. Actually liked VNL more than this one so far, but this WCh is about to kick into high gear. I guess most folks would rather they did away with the opening rounds and cut to the chase--when everybody's been eliminated except Euro-teams and China.


    I much prefer seeing who has a full team rather than who has the best 6 players, and who can manage that full team over the course of a long tournament. But, to each his/her own. I totally understand ... well, not really, but I'll give it respect.


    I imagine a lot of the seasoned Volley People here already know about most teams in the world. I'm new to it so I get excited to see teams that are new. The VNL was Turkey and Poland. This WCh has been Mexico and Germany.


    Speaking of Germany, is Lippmann unique in her big roundabout court lap she does to get from position 5 over to where she can attack from 2 (or 1, I guess, from backcourt)? Other OPs must do this, albeit more discreetly, and maybe I'm only noticing Lippmann do it because I'm fond of her.

  • Speaking of Germany, is Lippmann unique in her big roundabout court lap she does to get from position 5 over to where she can attack from 2 (or 1, I guess, from backcourt)? Other OPs must do this, albeit more discreetly, and maybe I'm only noticing Lippmann do it because I'm fond of her.

    I guess you mean what she does in rot.1. I think the American OPPs were the first to do this, definitely not a German invention. And I don't like it very much...

  • i've noticed murphy does that too... she seems to run a long way from 5 all the way to 1, but she runs behind the passers. i was watching some match the other, i can't recall which anymore, but a player ran the same route but in front of the passers. that doesn't seem like a good idea, because i'd think it messes up the reception potentially.

  • the WCh is too long, with too many rounds, just like the men's. there's no need for a 3rd round. they can just go to QF (like in the olympics) from round 2.


    the VNL/GP/WL are fun tournaments in the sense that we can see countries trying out many young players, as well as being a practice tournament for all these new players and players returning from lay-offs. but in the end, the WCh is a more important title to win.

  • Eh disagree. VNL and Olympics... All the dark horses will never make the playoffs just as it does for world championship.


    Truth be told, world championship is considered a tournament easiest to manipulate because of multiple pools avoiding the top 2,3 and 4 teams at once if you're the host and the chance of a weaker team getting through the final round goes up if they pick up the right draw to fall in such as Japan.

    VNL does not count. Strong teams do not send all their top players to VNL. It's more like a practise school for new, young players. Olympics is on the same level as WCH, but teams still play less matches than they do in WCH. In teams of the game strategy, manipulating could also happen in Olympics. Being a host always has advantages, otherwise who would like to host the game, given that volley market is much smaller than basketball or soccer.

  • i've noticed murphy does that too... she seems to run a long way from 5 all the way to 1, but she runs behind the passers. i was watching some match the other, i can't recall which anymore, but a player ran the same route but in front of the passers. that doesn't seem like a good idea, because i'd think it messes up the reception potentially.

    The Americans have been doing that since 2014(?), when they finally realized there's no way to score with Murphy hitting from 4. I even remember replacing her with Fawcett, just for that 1 rotation, and then Nicole coming off again. I've seen China do it with Chunlei too

  • Wow I just realized the Dutch had the luckiest draw ever when looking at their opponents on a live score app, not 1 'top' team and very close with JPN. And now they will face the top team that does not seem in form XD they must feel very happy about this.


    Sometimes Polen used to run as well btw xD

  • i watched a little bit of ITA x THA.


    poor THA. had they been in group E, they might be fighting for final 6... we'll miss this golden generation.


    ITA is playing like a well-oiled machine. both danesi and chirichella are getting a lot of kills, and danesi's blocking is tops! sylla has improved so much, and bosetti -- what can you say about her? love her, she's even contributing blocks to the team effort. malinov is playing really well too... they might be tough to beat in the final 4...

  • the end of the match was too funny... is THA really missing OH/OP? nootsara came in for malika but the coach left guedpard (2nd setter) as a wing spiker! that was crazy.


    in another match, he had thatdao enter as OPP, instead of MB. i know that pimpichay and chatchu'on are hurt, but guedpard as OPP???? that's crazy.


    remember when egonu, sylla and guerra all joined the NT, around 2014? i guess things didn't work out for guerra, as with cate bosetti, never fulfilled her promise... pietrini is doing much better, i guess.

  • U guys r just forgetting one thing... Netherlands is stronger than Italy, Russia, Turkey....who finished 4th in the OG? Who won Silver at the ECH??...Now can you remind me what Italy/Turkey/Russia won in the past few years?


    Do you guys really think that Netherlands and Japan would loose for Bulgaria`s B Team? Or for Canada? Or for this atrocious Turkey? Would they loose for Thailand and Korea, teams that we love but never ever win anything?? Would they loose for the super powerhouse Azerbaijan? NOOOOO. All these teams are on the same if not worse level as Germany,D.Republic and so on.


    Italy and China have faced only 1 strong team so far... and that is when they faced each other.

    USA has yet to face a strong team.... Russia is not even close to the level of Serbia/Brazil/China.


    I will take the Netherlands 4th place in the Olympics over Italy and Turkey`s Silver at VNL....