On paper, it appeared like there was a chance. A sliver, maybe. The Indian men were riding high from their triple wins in their previous matches, including the upsets of South Korea and Chinese Taipei. World No. 5 Japan was up next. Japan had sent its second-string team to the Asian Games, with its recent Asian Championship-winning squad building up towards the Olympics 2024 qualifiers.
But Japan’s backup men displayed the depth in quality to snuff out the tiny possibility of a shock result with a straight set 25-16, 25-18, 25-17 dismantling of India in the top six clash here at the China Textile Sports City Centre Gymnasium on Sunday.
“This was our chance,” felt setter Appavu Muthusamy. “These three teams we played were all kind of equal [in level].”
