Nagoya, Japan, November 9, 2006: Cuba followed up their victory over Japan on Wednesday by beating another Asian team, Chinese Taipei, on the second day of Pool E play at Nagoya Rainbow Hall on Thursday.
The three-time world champions and world No. 5 were much too strong for 23rd-ranked Chinese Taipei and came home 25-21, 25-20, 25-14.
The victory improved Cuba's overall win-loss record to 3-2 in the second round and dropped Chinese Taipei to the same mark. It was the Asian team's second straight defeat in the second round, but their three wins carried over from the first round should be enough to keep them in the tournament all the way to the last day at Osaka on November 16.
The early signs looked ominous for Chinese Taipei, as Cuba's Nancy Carrillo pounded a couple of winners at the net that almost made a hole in the court.
This was clearly going to be a main source of points, and fellow middle blocker Yenisei Gonzalez followed Carrillo's example and cracked one down the centre, too.
The Chinese Taipei players have shown remarkable resilience and self-confidence throughout this World Championship, and have outside hitters to trouble all defences in captain Chen Shu Li, Kou Nai Han and Lin Ching I.
Even though Cuba kept hitting them with left-wing missiles from Rosir Calderon and Yumilka Ruiz, Chinese Taipei remained unruffled and produced their own volleyball style to stay within reach.
When Yanelis Santos sent a service ace whistling through the Chinese Taipei team to give Cuba a 15-12 lead, head coach Lin Kuang Hung took his team off for their first TO.
The acrobatic defence of the Chinese Taipei players was warmly appreciated by the spectators, who were taking the Asian team to their hearts, just as they had done in the first round in Tokyo.
When Chinese Taipei closed the gap to two points at 20-18, Carrillo moved up a gear to unleash another bomb. Coach Lin took his team off again when trailing 23-19, but the first set was too far away to retrieve. Kou served into the net to give Cuba set point at 24-20, and Ruiz closed it out 25-21.
In the second set, Cuba led 8-7 at the first technical break thanks to their powerful blocking on the nimble Chinese Taipei spikers.
Kou found the going tough, and spiked wildly in a bid to avoid the Cuban block, and a Gonzalez service ace moved Cuba ahead 11-7 and forced a Chinese Taipei TO.
Santos was having a great game for Cuba, both in her agile ground defence and varied attack, and helped her team build up a six-point lead, 16-10, at the second TTO.
Against the smaller Asian blockers, Carrillo could score points as easily as picking apples off a tree, and sent a service ace booming through the Chinese Taipei team to hurry Cuba toward the second set, 25-20.
Lin Ching I was leading the Chinese Taipei scoring, and finished off one rally that featured a remarkable Kou dig on a Carrillo cracker.
Chinese Taipei were showing a lot of invention to score points, and Chen Mei Ching floated one into the corner to keep Cuba on their toes in the third set.
But the Cubans could step up the pace at the right time and score through a number of players, and Santos brought up the second technical break 16-10.
Despite the adventurous setting of Wu Hsiao Li, the slick attacking patterns of her teammates and the never-say-die defence, Chinese Taipei could not stem the flow of Cuban points from the big guns.
