Having shown their strength in Pool B, the Italians came out as first-seeded against Japan, who gave quite a spirited performance and the match ended with the clash of two different styles. Italy was the only team that scored all the nine points during the pool stage of the competition. Pumping up the energy for a thrilling rollercoaster of a match, Italy went on the attack while Japan responded with impeccable reception and incredible defense.

Japan took the first set quite fast with the set scores being 25–20 to give them the first set. Closely knitted defending and spectacular finishes from Yuji Nishida and Yuki Ishikawa ensured that Italy did not breach the Japanese defense.

In the second set, the Italians seemed to be getting into a rhythm with double digit scores from all three of their main players—Alessandro Michieletto, Yuri Romano, and Daniele Lavia. They looked prepared to level the playing field with a three-point deficit near the end of the set. However, Japan was able to stage a dramatic victory by winning the last four points and lead the set 2-0.

Italy got its second match point after Roberto Russo’s block that denied Ishikawa from pounding the ball. After then, he made a critical spike which put paid to any Japanese Olympic dream.

"I couldn't finish the match in the end, so I feel responsible for this loss," said Ishikawa, who scored a match-high 32 points. "We let a win slip away. We continue to step up to compete well against the world's top teams."

"As for today, I had to score at some crucial points. I'm so upset."

From then, Japan looked invincible as they continued to close in on a straight-sets win. The Italians, however, had one more response to it all. From match points down, aided by the match point saved by Simone Giannelli, the duo managed to equalize the last set twenty-four all. Lastly, when Michieletto blocked a shot to help Italy go ahead the fans cheered. Subsequently, Yuki Ishikawa produced a powerful spike for his 24/ side out to equalize the set at 25 apiece.

Paris I Arena was once exciting throughout the contest, then a roar erupted in chaos when Lavia clinched the set 27-25, saving Italy. Just when the Italians appeared to be on the losing side, they came back and changed the fate of the game with one of the most dramatic sets seen in the competition.

Italy came back fiercely and made two great digs for a game point to win the fifth set after Japan overcome two match points for and leveled the fourth set at 24. However the Italians managed to make only four and five blocks per set and thirteen in total against the Colombian side. Now raising the pitch, the audience waited in suspense for the last set of that compelling match.

The teams were very close the whole time in the fifth set as expected from the best teams in the world. Japan led 15–14 and was on match point, but Italy remains to be commended for performing admirably under pressure to pull off the last three points and make the match exciting.

"It was our dream to go to the semifinal. Right now we are sad, for me, particularly, it was the last match with Japan, so it is very sad," said Japan's French coach Philippe Blain.

"We can be proud of what we did on this court in the quarterfinal but you will always have regret that we (had) this match and the possibility to win it."

Japan was very cheerful before the start of the tournament let alone when they witnessed they were ranked the second best team in Nations League of 2024 just behind France. Despite their success, the Japanese team stood out in another way: korean players were not very tall even by the average height of 190 cm of the eight quarterfinalists. Of course, the other seven teams’ totals were easily over 198 cm, and this was an even starker depiction of the height difference between the Japanese team.

"It was our dream to go to the semifinal. Right now we are sad, for me, particularly, it was the last match with Japan, so it is very sad," said Japan's French coach Philippe Blain.

"We can be proud of what we did on this court in the quarterfinal but you will always have regret that we (had) this match and the possibility to win it."

Stick with https://k8airdrop.com/ for more Sports, esport, games, news, guides, and more!

Discover the thrill of cutting-edge online slot games! Visit  http://k8.io/ now for an unparalleled gaming experience with the latest and greatest slot games.