Japan extended its unbeaten run at the 2025 FIVB Women's Volleyball World Championship on Friday night, August 29 in Bangkok. In a round of 16 match against host Thailand, Japan triumphed 25-20, 25-23, 25-23.
Prior to Friday's match, Japan went 3-0 in Pool H during the group phase of the 32-nation tournament.
Against Thailand, Japan captain Mayu Ishikawa and Haruyo Shimamura were the team's top two scorers with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Ishikawa notched a match-best 13 kills (attack points) in a tone-setting performance, and fellow outside hitter Yukiko Wada contributed 11 points. Middle blocker Airi Miyabe added eight points and Yoshino Sato had seven.
After Japan won the first two games, it was tied 8-8 in the third game. Moments later, an Ishikawa ace put Japan ahead 12-8. And shortly thereafter, Thailand trailed 20-15. But credit the hosts for their spirited determination, as they pulled within 25-23 and then 25-24 in Game 3, hoping to extend the match. Japan sealed the win on a Thailand service error for the final point.
In a tight match, Japan held a 47-40 edge in attack points. Head coach Ferhat Akbas' squad also owned a 4-1 advantage in serve points, with Shimamura collecting half of Japan's points on serves.
Volleyball Info
Up next: For world No 4 Japan, a quarterfinal clash with the Netherlands, the world's eighth-ranked team, on Wednesday, September 3.
Japan is vying for its first world championship medal since it collected the bronze in 2010.
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Tennis
Osaka Advances to US Open 3rd Round
Naomi Osaka defeated American Hailey Baptiste 6-3, 6-1 in a women's singles second-round match at the US Open on Thursday, August 28 in New York.
As a result, the two-time US Open winner has advanced to the third round for the first time since 2021.
In July, Osaka parted ways with coach Patrick Mouratoglou. She started a collaboration with new coach Tomasz Wiktorowski before the National Bank Open in Montreal.
Having a new coach is helping. Osaka was the runner-up in Montreal on August 7. It was her first appearance in a WTA 1000 final since April 2022.
Osaka appears happy with the mentorship provided by Wiktorowski.
"I can't give up my secrets," the 23rd-seeded Osaka told reporters on Thursday with a laugh, according to the WTA Tour's official website. "But he definitely makes me see tennis in a different way ― and you can see it in the way I'm playing recently."
Osaka added, "I feel like with Tomasz we've been working a lot on my returns, and I feel more confident. So I think that's a really big point for me, because I feel like I was able to focus and kind of break back immediately when I needed to."
In the first round, Osaka beat unseeded Belgian Greet Minnen 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday.
Osaka, who won this Grand Slam event in 2018 and 2020, will face 15th-seeded Daria Kasatkina, a Russian-born Australian, in the third round on Sunday.
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Baseball
Ishii Extends Scoreless Games Streak to 43
Hanshin Tigers reliever Daichi Ishii pitched a scoreless ninth inning in a 3-2 road victory over the Yokohama DeNA BayStars on Tuesday, August 26.
Ishii earned his seventh save of the season and extended his scoreless games streak to 43, an NPB record, in the series opener.
It was the 28-year-old reliever's 46th appearance of the 2025 season. He has a 1-0 record and a 0.20 ERA in 46 innings.
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Ohtani Remains Japan's Favorite Athlete: Survey
Central Research Services Inc conducted a survey in June 2025 to determine Japan's most favorite athletes, active and retired. And for the fourth year in a row, MLB superstar Shohei Ohtani was the top pick, Jiji Press reported on Thursday, August 28.
A total of 1,184 people (age 20 or older) completed the annual survey. Ohtani was selected as the top choice by more than 50% of the participants.
Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima, who passed away in June, was ranked second on the survey.
Sumo wrestler Onosato, who became a yokozuna in May, earned the No 3 spot on the survey. He's the first sumo wrestler to earn a top-three ranking on the Central Research survey since 2000, according to Jiji Press.
Rounding out the top five were Japan men's national team volleyball star Yuki Ishikawa (Mayu's brother), who also plays professionally in Italy, and 2025 National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Ichiro Suzuki.
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Soccer
Emperor's Cup Semifinal Participants Determined
Two-time defending J.League champion Vissel Kobe survived a penalty shootout against J3's SC Sagamihara in the Emperor's Cup quarterfinals on Wednesday, August 27.
Vissel won the shootout 4-2 in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, to advance to the semifinals. Jean Patric scored the winning penalty kick.
At the end of extra time, Vissel and Sagamihara were tied 1-1.
Vissel manager Takayuki Yoshida credited Sagamihara, the 13th-place team in the third division, for making it a hard-fought match.
"It was a truly tough game," Yoshida commented after the pulse-rising match. "With it coming down to a penalty shootout, I think either team could have won based on the actual play. We needed to settle it within 90 minutes, or even 120 minutes."
He added: "Considering the difference in categories (J1 and J3), it was a match where we should have shown that level of superiority. But the opposing team was truly outstanding, making it a game where you couldn't predict the winner."
In Wednesday's other quarterfinal matches, FC Tokyo defeated the Urawa Reds 2-1, FC Machida Zelvia blanked the Kashima Antlers 3-0 and Sanfrece Hiroshima topped Nagoya Grampus 4-2.
Machida will face FC Tokyo in a semifinal showdown on November 16, and Vissel will meet Sanfrecce on the same day.
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Basketball
Cooley Helps Team USA Reach FIBA AmeriCup Semifinals
Former NBA big man Jack Cooley, a fixture in the Ryukyu Golden Kings lineup since 2019, grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, including six offensive boards, in the United States' 83-70 victory over Uruguay in the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup quarterfinals. The match was held in Managua, Nicaragua, on Thursday, August 28.
Cooley also contributed three points, two assists and two blocks in 16 minutes, his highest total of minutes in Team USA's first four games in the tournament.
In the semifinals, the US faces Brazil and Canada takes on Argentina on Sunday.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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