Qatar go down fighting to China in tie-break

Qatar went down fighting to China in a thrilling tie-break 3-2 (28-26, 21-25, 26-28, 25-19, 15-10) in the quarter-final stage of the 21st Asian Volleyball Championship in Chiba, Japan, yesterday. Zhang Jingyin who scored 26 points remained China’s main option in offence, as he connected quite consistently with his attacks. Captain Jiang Chuan added 23 points.Qatar set their plays on Youssef Oughlaf and Nikola Vasic at the flanks. Both teams displayed nearly equal strength, showing that they could also run the middle attack effectively.Qatar suffered from attack errors giving China the first set at 28-26. Qatar showed that they could play along this tempo, and work transition plays with Renan Ribeiro from the left side take the second set 25-21. With lucky tap-in and a block, Qatar won 28-26 in the third set. In the fourth set,  Qatar took good swings but they were being closely guarded by tall blockers. Peng Shikun struck at the middle to finish the fourth set with 25-19 for China.In the decider, China connected with 4 quick blocks to stamp their power and intent to win. It was the Jiang Chuan show, as he attacked, blocked, aced, and led the team in high adrenaline, all the way to a 15-10 triumph in the tie-break.