Kazakhstan ends Vietnam’s 23-game winning streak in thrilling five-set battle

Kazakhstan dramatically halted Vietnam’s dominance in the 2026 AVC Women’s Volleyball Cup, pulling off a stunning five-set upset victory over the defending champions, 18-25, 25-19, 23-25, 25-22, 15-13, on Friday at the Candon City Arena in Candon City.

The loss marked Vietnam’s first defeat of the tournament and snapped their impressive 23-match unbeaten streak that had lasted nearly three years in AVC competitions.

Kazakhstan, who topped Pool B with a perfect 5-0 record, also gained sweet revenge against Vietnam after losing to them in the 2024 final and the 2025 semifinals.

The decisive fifth set was a tense back-and-forth affair. Vietnam took a brief 9-7 lead on a powerful backrow attack by Trần Thị Thanh Thúy, but Kazakhstan responded with four straight points, led by Kristina Belova, to go ahead 11-9.

The Vietnamese side quickly leveled the score at 11-11 with a quick attack from Nhu Anh Le and an ace by Võ Thị Kim Thoa. However, Kazakhstan regained control with a decisive 3-0 run to reach 14-11.

Vietnam narrowed the gap to 14-13, but Tatyana Yatskiv delivered the final point to seal the historic win for Kazakhstan.

Belova led the Kazakh attack with 21 points (19 attacks, 2 blocks), while Zhanna Syroyeshkina also scored 21 points, including six aces. Yatskiv contributed 20 points in a well-balanced offensive performance that helped Kazakhstan overcome a 1-2 set deficit.

For Vietnam (4-1), T4 was outstanding with 25 points, all from spikes. Thi Bich Thuy Tran added 17 points and Thi Thuy Dinh scored 16 in a valiant but losing effort.