NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China smashed Kazakhstan 3-0 to finish top of Group B at the women's volleyball tournament of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games here on Friday, setting up a quarterfinal clash with Vietnam.
Holding an overall edge, China beat its opponent in straight sets 25-18, 25-6, 25-14, with the match lasting just one hour.
China outperformed Kazakhstan on major technical indicators, recording 47 winning spikes and 10 blocks against Kazakhstan's 26 and four, respectively.
Zhuang Yushan, the 23-year-old outside hitter who scored a game-high 16 points, said the team had drawn valuable lessons from their opening match against the Philippines and adjusted accordingly. "We strengthened our defense and blocking, and I believe that showed in our performance today," she said.
When talking about several substitutions during the match, China head coach Zhao Yong said he hoped to give more players an opportunity to get game time and gain experience to prepare for the upcoming knockout round.
Commenting on the team's performance, Kazakhstani player Tatyana Nikitina said she had expected a much better game from her side. "China's a very strong team, but we wanted to play better than we did."
Under the competition format, the top two finishers from each pool advanced to the quarterfinals. Kazakhstan and China, who had beaten the Philippines 3-0 on Wednesday, have both secured quarterfinal berths.
Elsewhere on Friday, Hong Kong, China swept Qatar 3-0 in Pool D. Middle blocker Yim Wing Ni and opposite Shum Lam shared a game-high 15 points. In Group D's other action, South Korea defeated Vietnam 3-1.
In Pool C, Mongolia defeated Kyrgyzstan 3-0, while Thailand overcame Chinese Taipei by the same scoreline.
In the last match of Group A, host Japan beat Indonesia 3-1.
The quarterfinals are set for Sunday. South Korea will take on Kazakhstan, Japan will meet Chinese Taipei, while Thailand will face Indonesia. ■
