Step one pulls back the attack
Against Indonesia, the opponent's powerful serves repeatedly pushed Vietnam's rear team into a passive position. When the first pass was not of quality, the setter did not have many options to organize the attack. The ball was put on the wing more, the main forces had to handle difficult balls and the opponent had more time to organize blocks.
This problem once appeared in the match against South Korea. When Vietnam controlled step one well, attacking plans were deployed more coherently. But as soon as the step one support stage deviated, the entire system was immediately dragged along.
It is worth mentioning that this is not just an ASIAD story. The matches in 2026 show that step one is still a major weakness of Vietnam.
In addition, the regrettable thing in the Indonesia match is that Vietnam is not always overwhelmed by opponents.
In set 1, Vietnam once led 9-7 but then let Indonesia create a long streak of points, taking a 19-11 lead. Thanh Thuy and her teammates still had the ability to create pressure by narrowing the gap to 19-21, but the advantage belonged to the opponent from before.
Set 2 even showed this issue more clearly. Vietnam led 10-6, then let Indonesia equalize 19-19. When the set entered the final points, the team could not make a difference and lost 21-25.
In balanced matches, the ability to handle at the end of the set often determines the result. The Vietnamese women's team had a chance but could not maintain the advantage long enough.
The same thing happened in the match against South Korea. Vietnam had times of playing evenly, but when the opponent accelerated at the end of the set, the team could not maintain the necessary stability.
When the main option is locked
Another problem is the relatively large dependence on attacking spearheads capable of scoring points. Quynh Huong, Anh Thao and the pillars still have moments of making their mark.
However, when the first step is not good or the opponent organizes effectively, maintaining pressure from many directions becomes difficult.
The match against China in the quarter-finals is an example. Against an opponent capable of putting great pressure in both serving and blocking, Vietnam could not maintain the game and lost 0-3. The gap in ball quality in decisive situations has been quite clear.
After ASIAD 20, the Vietnamese women's team needs to solve many problems. Step one must be more solid, the ability to handle the end of the set must be better and the team needs more plans when the main attacking spearheads are locked down by the opponent.
If these bottlenecks have not been improved, maintaining the game against strong opponents continues to be a big challenge for the Vietnamese women's team.
