FIVB Women’s Nations League: China make winning start in Hong Kong, as partisan crowd make it feel ‘like a home game’
- China’s volleyball stars begin tournament with comfortable 3-set win over Canada
- Outside hitter Li Yingying hails raucous support from 4,000-strong crowd at Hong Kong Coliseum
China’s volleyball stars kicked off their Women’s Nations League in Hong Kong in convincing fashion on Tuesday, beating Canada in straight sets.
Having won all their four matches in the previous round in Nagoya last week, the squad maintained their 100 per cent record with a 25-14, 25-18, 29-27 win in front of a partisan 4,000-strong crowd at Hong Kong Coliseum.
Lead by captain Yuan Xinyue, a member of the 2016 Rio Olympic gold medal winning team, the world No 5s proved much better than their opponents, who are nine places behind in the rankings.
Outside hitter Li Yingying came away with 14 points, leaving her as the top scorer of the evening, one ahead of Canada’s captain Alexa Gray.
The 23-year-old Li was only a budding player when China took part in the same tournament in Hong Kong four years ago, but has now become a major part of team.
“I feel so happy to return to Hong Kong,” the Tianjin player said. “The fans’ support made it a like home ground for us and hopefully more will come to support us in the next three games.”