2024 VNL May 31: Netherlands Win and Canada Lose, Closing Gap

On May 31, the 2024 Volleyball Nations League continued with intense competition across two pools, featuring six matches.

The day kicked off with Thailand securing a hard-fought victory over France in a thrilling five-set match (25-23, 25-21, 23-25, 20-25, 15-7).

In a crucial encounter, the Netherlands overcame the Dominican Republic 3-1 (25-17, 23-25, 25-21, 25-17). This win awarded the Netherlands 7.51 world ranking points, significantly narrowing their gap with Canada, which currently holds the final qualifying spot for Paris 2024 through the world ranking pathway.

In the third match, Japan upset home fans in Macao by defeating their Asian rivals China 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-18, 25-17). Japanese captain Koga led the scoring with 25 points. Despite Japan’s victory, the home crowd focused their attention on Zhu Ting of China, who made a full-set appearance in the fourth set, much to the delight of the local spectators, who cheered enthusiastically for each of her spikes.

In Pool 4, Poland continued their impressive unbeaten run by defeating Germany 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-21). Poland has now won seven matches in a row, dropping only one set throughout the tournament.

The penultimate match saw Serbia defeating Canada 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 26-24, 25-20). This loss cost Canada 6.09 world ranking points. With the Netherlands’ earlier victory, Canada’s lead over the Netherlands, which was more than 13 points just one matchday ago, shrank to a mere 0.03 points.

The final match of the day featured the USA overpowering Bulgaria in straight sets (25-17, 25-22, 25-22). Outside hitter Skinner led the scoring with 19 points, securing the fourth win in six matches for the American team, while Bulgaria’s win-loss record dropped to 1-5.

(Featured image source: Volleyball World)

(Written by Boris CHUNG Bok Man)