KUALA LUMPUR: Japan claimed their fifth straight Women’s Asia Cup Softball Championship title by defeating China 9-2 in six innings in the final at the GBK Softball Stadium in Jakarta on Tuesday.
It was Eri Yamada's home run that clinched victory for the Land of the Rising Sun after a hard fought battle that dragged for an hour and 40 minutes. It was Japan’s seventh victory in 11 editions.
Japan’s superiority was further underlined when they bagged three out of six individual awards.
Taiwan booked the third spot for the World Cup in 2021 when they defeated the Philippines 10-0 in four innings under the run ahead rule.
Despite missing out on a World Cup berth, the Philippines still made the cut for the Olympic qualifier.
Besides Japan who qualify automatically for next year's Tokyo Olympics, the top six teams also earned spots in the Olympic qualifier in Shanghai on Sept 24-29. The rest who made the cut were China, Taiwan, South Korea, Indonesia and Hong Kong.
They will be joined by Australia and New Zealand as part of the Asia/Oceania qualifier.
The eight teams will be drawn into two groups with the top two teams advancing to the Super Round. The winner will qualify for the Olympics.
Those who missed the cut were Thailand, Singapore and India.
RESULTS:
Final: Japan 9 China 2
Third: Taiwan 10 Philippines 0
AWARDS
Most Valuable Player: Eri Yamada (Jpn)
Best Pitcher: Missaki Katsumata (Jpn)
Best Hitter: Angeline Ursabia (Phi)
Best Slugger: Angeline Ursabia (Phi)
Most Stolen Base: Mikiko Iguchi (Jpn)
Most Runs Batted (RBI): Chen Chia Yi (Tai)