The possibility of the Hangzhou Asian Games (AG) national team led by coach Ryu Joong-il, who suffered a ‘blow’ against Chinese Taipei, to advance to the finals has increased. This is why China defeated Japan.

Korea won a cold game in the 5th inning with a score of 17-0 in the 3rd game of Group B of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games held at the 2nd stadium of Shaoxing Baseball and Softball Sports Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China on the 3rd.먹튀검증

Korea started the tournament on a good note by winning the 8th inning cold game with a score of 10-0 in the first game of the group stage against Hong Kong on the 1st. However, the result of the second match against Taiwan was somewhat shocking. Even though the mound blocked Taiwan’s batting lineup with the minimum number of runs allowed, the batting lineup struggled, unable to score a single run. The Korean batting line did not show much strength other than Yoon Dong-hee’s 3 hits and Choi Ji-hoon’s 2 hits. As a result, they lost 0-4, and recorded their third consecutive loss against Taiwan in recent international competitions.

Although the atmosphere was inevitably depressed after losing to Taiwan, Korea still won a ticket to the super round. On the 3rd, Korea’s starting pitcher Na Kyun-an pitched 4 scoreless innings, and the batting line gave up 11 hits, including 3 home runs, against the Thai mound, which was ‘one level below’, scoring 17 runs at the end of the attack in the bottom of the 4th inning, and 5 runs. Kim Young-gyu came on the mound in the first inning and finished the inning without allowing any runs, earning the win in a cold game.

Korea secured two wins in the group stage and secured a spot in the super round regardless of the outcome of the match between Taiwan and Hong Kong. But here is some good news. What could be considered the biggest ‘unusual’ of this tournament occurred. China defeated Japan 1-0 in the final match of Group A. In the case of Japan, unemployed baseball players participated in the team, but it was a team that could never be underestimated.

But China was stronger. Most of the players on the Chinese national team who appeared in the Hangzhou Asian Games were players who also participated in the World Baseball Classic (WBC) held in March. At that time, the Chinese national team held off Japan’s powerful batting line by allowing only 3 runs until the bottom of the 5th inning in the group stage against Japan. As a result, they lost 1-8, but they performed better than the Korean national team, which almost got a cold game.

As China defeated Japan, they advanced to the Super Round with 3 wins and undefeated in Group A, and this result is good news for the Korean national team. Although ‘number of cases’ is still required, there is no doubt that it has become a little easier. Initially, Korea was wary of Taiwan and Japan. In particular, if Japan was to pass the group stage with 3 wins and no losses, a major win in the Korea-Japan match was essential. However, with China catching Japan, advancing to the finals became a little easier.

First of all, ‘Ryu Joong-il’ will be confirmed to advance to the finals if he defeats both China and Japan in the super round, and if Taiwan also defeats both China and Japan. Even if Taiwan loses to China, even if the Korean national team beats China by a large score, they are likely to advance to the finals. This is because Korea did not give up many points in the process of losing to Taiwan in the Group B stage. Therefore, it is safe to say that if they beat China by a large margin and win the game against Japan, they will get a ticket to the finals.

With China defeating Japan, the Super Round schedule was finally confirmed. After a 5-day break, Korea will play its first Super Round match against Japan on the 6th, and then face China on the 7th. In order for Korea to increase its chances of advancing to the finals, its batting lineup must wake up. Although they won cold games against Hong Kong and Thailand, they were all one level below the other. The mounds of the teams that made it to the super round are by no means easy.

Among them, Kang Baek-ho’s role is essential. Kang Baek-ho returned to the first-team stage after taking a hiatus this year for various reasons and showed off his hot batting ability. Worst of all, ahead of the Hangzhou Asian Games call, coach Lee Kang-cheol repeatedly said, “It’s a waste.” However, Kang Baek-ho’s performance in the group stage did not meet expectations. He struggled in 3 games with 1 hit in 11 at-bats and a batting average of 0.091. In particular, it was a huge shock that he went silent with 3 strikeouts and no hits in 4 at-bats against Hong Kong.

Kang Baek-ho, who was unable to target Hong Kong pitchers, naturally failed to get a hit against Taiwan, and continued to struggle, including being struck out by a Thai pitcher in the last game of the group stage. If Kang Baek-ho’s only hit was in the KBO league, he still didn’t feel like he was hitting very well, considering that it was a ball that was likely to lead to a ground ball to second base after being caught with a diving catch.

This is not just Kang Baek-ho’s problem. Like Kang Baek-ho, the firepower of Kim Seong-yoon (0.125), Moon Bo-kyung (0.200), and Park Seong-han (0.167), who played in all three games, and Kim Hyeong-jun (0.143), who wore a catcher’s mask as a starter in both games, clearly left much to be desired. While it is unclear whether Kwak Bin will participate in the Super Round due to symptoms of phlegm, it is essential to have firepower in order to somehow win a ticket to the finals.

In the current situation, if Korea succeeds in advancing to the finals, it is very likely that they will have a return match with China or Taiwan. Although Korea was defeated by Chinese Taipei, it remains to be seen whether Korea, whose chances of making the finals have increased thanks to China’s performance, can succeed in winning its fourth consecutive title in the tournament. First of all, Korea has good memories of setting a new record for the most points scored in a single game by defeating China 22-2 in the WBC.