SEA Games 2023: Thailand and Vietnam reach women's volleyball final
Philippines will take on Indonesia in the bronze medal match with both sides desperate to avoid the dreaded fourth place finish.
Volleyball
Despite vociferous support from the crowd and their own best efforts, the Philippines were downed 3-0 by Thailand, the 13-time consecutive winners of the Southeast Asian Games women’s volleyball title.
Thailand secured a 25-22, 25-9, 25-12 win over the Filipinas on Saturday (13 May) to make it through to Sunday’s final where they will face Vietnam, who triumphed over Indonesia in the second semi-final of the night.
A much closer affair, Vietnam secured a 3-2 win in a dramatic match that went to a tiebreak (21-25, 25-15, 16-25, 25-22, 15-12).
The early semi-final saw the Filipinas try everything in the first set to upend the Thai favourites.
Quickly taken spikes and well-rehearsed set plays were no doubt representative of the two-week training camp the team had in Japan ahead of the Cambodian Games under Brazilian coach and 1992 Olympic champion Jorge Edson Souza de Brito. However, Thailand, the world number 15 ranked team, had enough to take the first set and go one set up.
From then on, the Filipinas couldn't react without their talismanic captain Alyssa Valdez, who is making limited appearances on the court in Phnom Penh in her first competition back from a lengthy injury layoff. As a result, the Thais had the upper hand and advanced to the gold-medal match.
Valdez and her team-mates are desperate to avoid the fate of the previous three SEA Games, in which they finished in the dreaded fourth place.
"We're really praying that we can give pride and honour to our country, bringing home some medals as well," Valdez told Olympics.com exlcusively prior to the semi-final.
"We're really giving our best and I can see all the girls are really providing all the energy that we need to."
The second semi-final saw pure drama with Indonesia taking the first set before Vietnam claimed the next, and for the next two games, this pattern was repeated until the first-to 15 tiebreak separated the pair.
Vietnam, who have won silver medals in 10 of the past 11 editions of the SEA Games, defeated perennial bronze medallists Indonesia in the second women's volleyball semi-final. Indonesia will now compete against the Philippines for the bronze medal on Sunday.
Thailand will now take on Vietnam in the final at 17:00 on Sunday 14 May and Philippines will vie against Indonesia for that final podium position at 19:00.
SEA Games 2023: Women's volleyball results - Saturday 13 May
5th-8th finals
Malaysia beat Cambodia 3-0*
Singapore beat Myanmar 3-2 (25-20, 23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-10 tie break
Semi-finals
Thailand beat Philippines 3-0 (25-22, 25-9, 25-12)
Vietnam beat Indonesia 3-2 (21-25, 25-15, 16-25, 25-22, 15-12)
*Cambodia did not turn up
SEA Games 2023: Women's volleyball medal matches on Sunday 14 May
(All times local ICT)
12:00 – 7th/8th place match
Cambodia v Myanmar
14:30 – 5th/6th place match
Malaysia v Singapore
17:30 – 3rd / 4th place match
Philippines v Indonesia
19:00 – 1st / 2nd place match
Thailand v Vietnam