The 3-1 victory over the Philippines helped the Vietnamese women's volleyball team have a favorable opening match in stage 1 of SEA V.Cup 2026. However, the performance of coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet's team still has many "grains of sand" to overcome before two bigger challenges, Indonesia and Thailand.
Contrary to predictions about an easy match, the Philippines entered the game confidently and created no small difficulties for the Vietnamese team. The away team defended resiliently, launched good pressure and continuously exploited Vietnam's unstable first steps.
The first set took place fiercely until the final points, before Thanh Thuy and her teammates won a thrilling 29-27 victory.
That was also the turning point of the match. After overcoming psychological pressure, the Vietnamese team played more smoothly in set 2. The blocking system worked effectively, the ability to organize attacks was clearly improved, helping the home team quickly overwhelm and win 25-17.
However, stability is still something that Vietnam cannot maintain throughout. When the coaching staff rotated the squad in set 3, the coordination between positions decreased significantly. Uncoordinated handling and low attacking efficiency created conditions for the Philippines to rise up and win 25-20 and narrow the score to 1-2.
In the 4th set, the experience of the key players continued to promote their value. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy and her teammates quickly regained the game, maintained a safe distance to close the match with a 25-19 victory, thereby winning all 3 points on the opening day.
The biggest highlight of the Vietnamese team lies in their fighting spirit. In difficult times, especially in set 1 and the beginning of set 4, the players still maintained composure to handle decisive balls. This is a factor that helps the home team create a difference compared to the Philippines.
In addition, coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet's ability to adjust tactics also brings positive signals. Flexible personnel changes, giving opportunities to many players to enter the field not only helps the team maintain the pace of competition but also is an opportunity for the coaching staff to assess the depth of the force. SEA V.Cup is an important tournament, helping the Vietnamese team aim for bigger goals in the year.
However, the performance of the Vietnamese team is still not really convincing. The first step is sometimes unstable, making it difficult for the setter to deploy attacks. The scoring efficiency is also not uniform as the team still depends quite a lot on experienced individuals at decisive moments.
In particular, losing set 3 against a lower-rated opponent shows that the reserve squad still needs more time to improve. When facing Indonesia or Thailand - teams that possess much greater attacking ability and pressure - such periods of silence could completely cost the whole match.
However, overall, the victory over the Philippines is still a positive start for the Vietnamese women's team. The team completed the goal of winning all 3 points, and also had more practical data to adjust their playing style and personnel before the next matches.
SEA V.Cup 2026 has just begun. The important thing for coach Nguyen Tuan Kiet and his team is not only victories, but also how the team gradually improves stability in tactical operation.
If the limitations revealed in the opening match are overcome, the Vietnamese women's volleyball team has every basis to aim for the championship right at home.
