China beat South Korea to set up final against Japan
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-09-27 10:26

BANGKOK, Sept. 26 (Xinhuanet) -- China rallied back from two sets down to beat South Korea 3-2, setting up a final clash against Japan in the Asian Men's Volleyball Championship in Suphan Buri, Thailand on Monday.

China won the semifinal 24-26, 24-26, 25-21, 29-27 and 19-17, while Japan secured the other final berth, beating India 25-17, 25-23 and 36-34.

Due to a slow start and a string of service errors, China lost the opening two sets with an identical score 26-24, but controlled the rhythm of the third set, pulling it back 25-21.

In the fourth set, China squandered its earlier leads 6-3 and 7-5 due to service errors again, exchanged the lead 15 times since 7-all, but still managed to win 29-27 and force the match into a decisive fifth set.

Both sides fought fiercely and the fifth set became a tit-for-tat battlefield till 17-all before the Chinese scored the last two winning points for the great comeback victory.

In the other semifinal, Japan scored a straight-set win over India, but the third set was even pulled into a 34-all before Japan won with a pair of powerful spikes.

China will play Japan on Tuesday for the championship, while South Korea fights against India for the third-place finish.