MATCH INFO

Sapporo, Japan, November 12, 2011 – China beat Serbia for the first time ever with a stunning 3–1 (21–25, 25–19, 25–23, 25–23) win on Saturday in Sapporo, propelling the three-time champions into second on the World Cup standings with 16 points ahead of USA who are expected to reclaim second when they play Algeria in the late game of the day.

In three previous games between the two team, China had lost 3-1 at last year’s World Champs, 3-1 at this year’s World Grand Prix preliminaries and 3-2 in the World Grand Prix Finals. The improvement shown from each match was evident as the 2003 World Cup winners followed up superbly on their late night win against the hosts Japan on Friday.

Serbia missed out on a chance of jumping ahead of Brazil and remain in sixth with 11 points from three wins and four defeats, although Japan could move ahead when they play Korea in the following match.
Leading China, ranked sixth in the world, with 19 points (including five blocks and three aces) was Yang Junjing. For European champions Serbia, ranked fifth in the world, Milena Rasic notched 18.

The first set saw Serbia’s Rasic post four points early, but China countered with a pair of running spikes out wide from Ma Yunwen to draw within one. Two stubborn blocks by Yang Junjing on Ana Bjelica kept China close, and she subsequently put China up 16–14 with a well-timed ace. But Serbia’s Natasa Krsmanovic took over down the stretch taking a set from Bojana Zivkovic to drive a spike that gave them back the lead. She followed with a stunning block on Hui Ruoqi, plus a critical dig on a Ma attack that led to a Brizitka Molnar spike and a three-point edge. From there Serbia would close it 25–21.

Solid serving gave China an early jump in the second set and both Yang and Zhang Lei dropped aces to help their team to an 8–3 lead. Hui was attacking well for China, though Ana Bjelica countered with drives of her own, and and threw a block back in Hui’s face at one point. China kept its five-point cushion until Serbia’s Tijana Malesevic painted the baseline with an ace to cut the lead to 19–18. At that point a pair of spikes out wide from Hui and a clutch block from Xu Yunli off the bench gave it the second set to China 25–19, leveling the match at a set a piece.

In the third strong attacks from Bjelica gave Serbia a slight edge early, and then Rasic brought a stunning block upon Hui to jump ahead 12–9. Serbia clung to that lead until late when Yang put a block of her own on an attacking Malesevic to draw even at 18–18. Errant spikes by Malesevic late would give China they edge they needed, as Ma put it away with a spike off the block, 25–23, two sets to one for China.

Serbia started the fourth well with good serving from Zivkovic and Rasic, but China’s Yang would even it up 8–8 with a powerful spike. Molnar got going on the left side mid-set with two attacks and two blocks to put the Serbians up three. But consecutive spikes form Ma and Fan Linlin spelled trouble for Serbia, bringing China even at 20–20. Yang would clinch the set 25–23 and the match with her third and most important ace of the match.