Nanjing: Coach Kiattipong Ratchatagriangrai admitted that the team still has shortcomings that need to be urgently addressed before facing China tonight (June 4), after the Thai women's team lost their opening match against Serbia in the 2026 Volleyball Nations League.
According to Thai News Agency, in the first week of the 2026 Women's Volleyball Nations League in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China, the Thai women's volleyball team, ranked 18th in the world, played their first match against Serbia, ranked 9th in the world. Head coach Kiattipong Ratchatagriengkrai fielded a starting six consisting of setter and captain Pornpun Guedparach, outside hitters Pimpichaya Kokram, Sasipaporn Chantavisut, and Atcharaporn Kongyot, middle blockers Thaddao Nuekjeng and Kaewkallaya Kamulthala, with Piyanut Pannoy as the libero.
Serbia is led by 28-year-old captain Maja Aleksic and 21-year-old rising star outside hitter Alexandra Ucelac, who stands 188 centimeters tall. It turned out that the Thai women's volleyball team was no match for Serbia's powerful spikes, losing 3 sets to none: 24-26, 22-25, and 19-25. In this game, Alexandra Uselak scored the highest points for Serbia with 17 points, while for the Thai team, Pimpichaya, Sasipaporn, and Papatchaya each scored a maximum of 7 points.
After the game, "Coach Ott" Kiatipong Ratchatagriengkrai, head coach of the Thai women's volleyball team, praised Serbia for their good performance. Regarding the Thai team, he commended the two rising stars, Papatchaya Poltham ("Aomsap") and Kanthima Ekpachcha ("Dream"). He stated that everyone tried their best in this game, despite some nervousness, and acknowledged that there are still areas that need improvement in preparation for the next match against the host country, China.
"Chompoo" Pornphan, the team captain, said that the game was very close and everyone fought their best. She praised her teammates for their teamwork. For the next game, they need to quickly correct their mistakes to come back stronger and should perform better.
The Thai women's volleyball team has three more matches scheduled. Today at 6:30 PM, they face China, ranked 7th in the world. In their last five games, Thailand has won two and China has won three. Their most recent match was a 0-3 loss to China in the 2024 Nations League on June 1st. After that, Thailand will play Belgium on June 6th at 2:00 PM and the Czech Republic on June 7th at 10:30 AM. Live broadcasts are available on MONOMAX SPORTS.
Host nation China, ranked 9th in the world, suffered an upset loss in their first game yesterday, losing 0-3 (20-25, 20-25-24-26) to the Czech Republic, ranked 15th in the world. In this match, Mikaela Mlejkova of the Czech Republic and Tang Xin were the top scorers, both with 18 points each.
In another match, Poland, ranked 4th in the world and three-time consecutive Nations League bronze medalists, faced Belgium, ranked 14th. The game was a thrilling affair that went to five sets before Poland ultimately won 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-13). Poland's Julia Sturowski scored the highest points with 25.