In a place where the Chinese men's volleyballers kept staging surprising victories, no miracle appeared at the Capital Gymnasium on Wednesday night in their quarterfinal against defending champion Brazil.
The Chinese, before thundering cheers of home fans, lost their Beijing Olympic finale 17-25, and to the South Americans.
Brazil is thus set to replay the Athens Games final against Italy, but this time in semifinals. The Italians advanced to the final four after edging out Poland in five sets in another quarterfinal earlier in the afternoon.
The host, making a breakthrough to enter the quarterfinals with two wins against three losses in the preliminaries, showed no fears to the World's No. 1 team at the beginning of the opener.
Under the Chinese effective blocking, the Brazilian jumpers could seldom execute their famous quick and high spikes, while the brilliant spikes of the wing spiker Yuan Zhi and middle blocker Bian Hongmin helped China to catch up 9-9.
The Brazilian ace spikers Dante Amaral and captain Gilberto Filho Godoy, or better known as "Giba", exhibited their qualities with frequent high-jump spikes for back row and the left flank to launch a 15-7 run to take the set point 24-17. Samuel Fuchs sealed the set 25-17 for Brazil with a spike.
The Brazilians played quite relaxed in the second set and Giba, even had time to have some bites of an apple in the first technical timeout when they led 8-6. They controlled the set with overwhelming advantage at net with while the Chinese began to commit chains of services and spike faults. A determined Brazil took the set 25-15.
Brazil found no troubles to win the third set 25-16, though China's head coach Zhou Jian'an sent veteran players Sui Shengsheng and Shi Hairong at the court, hoping to regain the rhythm of the team. However, the Brazilians gave no chance to the two rescuers. Gustavo Endes surged from the middle of the court, smashed ball home and brought Brazil the decisive point.
(Xinhua News Agency August 20, 2008)