With Olympic berths hanging in the balance, the final six teams in the WBSC Premier12 are preparing to return to field for the tournament's Super Round, which begins in Japan on Monday.
Japan, the world's top-ranked team, enters the second round with a perfect record but isn't taking anything for granted. The Japanese are focused on winning the title for the first time and gaining momentum for next year's Tokyo Olympics. Samurai Japan will open its Super Round campaign against Australia at Zozo Marine Stadium at 7 p.m. on Monday.
"It was huge that we won all three of our games in the Taiwan round and it's put us closer (to the championship). And our players have built confidence and have gotten in better condition," said manager Atsunori Inaba.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.