In an electrifying start to the 2024-25 China Women's Volleyball Super League (VSL) season, Fujian secured a narrow 3-2 victory over Beijing in a five-set thriller held in Beijing on Saturday.
The league, which has been restructured into A and B tiers, aims to elevate the overall level of play. Tier A comprises the top eight teams from the previous season, while Tier B includes the remaining teams, youth squads from Tier A clubs, and university teams. Wang Mengjie, the national team libero who recently joined Beijing, praised the new format for providing opportunities and fostering improvement among all participants.
Fujian initially dominated the match, taking a 2-0 lead. However, Beijing made a remarkable comeback, overcoming a 21-14 deficit to tie the series and force a deciding fifth set. The decisive set saw Fujian's 21-year-old national team player, Zhuang Yushan, shine with a game-high 29 points, leading her team to victory.
\"My performance might have been a bit inconsistent,\" Zhuang commented. \"I failed to step up when needed in the third set. But in the fifth set, my teammates helped me regain my form, and I'm very grateful to them. In the new format, we will challenge stronger teams, which is a good test for us. And we will try to stay in the top eight.\"
Beijing welcomed new talent with the debut of outside hitter Edina Begic from Bosnia and Herzegovina and opposite hitter Jelena Vulin from Serbia. Begic, who scored a team-high 27 points, expressed her excitement about playing in China and the opportunity to enhance her skills.
\"I was playing in Italy the majority of the time, and in Türkiye, Russia,\" Begic said. \"And I was really excited to come to China. I can see in the first game, there's a lot of defense, a lot of rallies, and that's what I heard about the Chinese league that there is like really a lot of rallies. It's super exciting to be here. It's going to be another learning process also for me, how to score, how to do shots, how to become a better player.\"
With the introduction of the new league structure, fans can expect more competitive matches and opportunities for emerging talent to shine on the national stage.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
