Indian spikers settle for silver in U-23 Asian Championship

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India finished runners-up in the Asian men's U-23 Volleyball Championship after suffering a 1-3 loss at the hands of Chinese Taipei in the final on Sunday.

India was slow to get off the blocks in the first set, allowing the opposition to steer the set in their direction, especially after the 10-point mark. 

The team did threaten to mount a comeback in the latter part of the set, but the deficit proved too big to overturn as the Amit Gulia-led side ended up conceding the set 25-21.

In the second set, powered by the combination of Muthusamy and Shon John, India took a slim lead early on and held on to it for the most part of the set. However, some ordinary reception in the ensuing minutes saw them concede the lead close to the 20-point mark after which Chinese Taipei never looked back and won the set 25-20. 

The third set saw some improved blocking by Shikhar Singh and Prince but service errors at crucial junctures allowed Chinese Taipei recover midway through the set. With survival at stake, the Indian spikers upped the ante in the closing moments of the set, making the most of the opposition's errors to it 25-19.

In the decisive fourth set, Chinese Taipei maintained pressure from the first minute as Chang Y.S and Sung PT's spikes got the better of Indian blockers early on in the set. 

But Shon John's quality spikes and some impressive blocking kept bringing India back into the match. Despite trailing by seven points at one stage, they brought the difference down to a single point to make the scoreline read 24-23. 

But Chinese Taipei didn't take long to wrap up the set and a powerful spike once again proved too good for the Indians as their opponents won 25-23 to seal the match.