Megawati Hangestri Returns, Women's National Volleyball Team Optimistic About Top Two Target

BOGOR, KOMPAS - Megawati Hangestri Pertiwi is ready to mark her comeback with the Indonesian women's national volleyball team this year in the 2025 SEA V League. Megawati will help the national team achieve its target of finishing in the top two in the event.

Megawati Hangestri and 13 other Indonesian female volleyball players departed for Thailand on Wednesday (30/7/2025) in the early hours of WIB to participate in the first round of the SEA V League starting Friday (1/8/2025). This Southeast Asian inter-country tournament will mark Megawati's debut with the national women's team.

Previously, Megawati was granted permission not to attend the national women's team call-up to participate in the AVC Nations Cup, an international tournament in Asia, last June. The player from Jember, East Java, suffered a knee injury and was set to get married. She then fulfilled her promise to join the national team for the SEA V League.

"I am not in 100 percent condition, but I hope to perform as best as I can in the SEA V League," said Megawati during the release of the women's national team at the Padepokan Voli Jenderal Polisi Kunarto, Sentul, Bogor Regency, Tuesday (29/7/2025).

Megawati also added that she is ready to take the field in the opening match against Vietnam. The match will be held in Nakhon Ratchadima at 1:30 PM WIB.

The SEA V Women's League is only participated in by four teams, namely Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Each team will face each other in this two-round tournament. After being held in Thailand until August 3, 2025, the SEA V League will continue in Vietnam from August 8 to 10, 2025.

In each round, the team at the top of the standings will emerge as the champion. The points from the two rounds will be accumulated to determine the final standings of the teams.

Megawati, who plays as an opposing midfielder, joins the national team alongside outside hitter Arsela Nuari Purnama, who was also absent from the AVC Nations Cup due to injury. The women's team also called up veteran middle blocker Asih Titi Pangestuti to replace Rika Dwi Latri, who is focusing on recovering from an injury.

Besides being Megawati's first time appearing with the national team this year, the SEA V League will also be her first opportunity to play as captain. In this new role, the best opponent in the 2023 AVC Challenge Cup will learn to divide her focus between herself and her teammates.

"Previously, my focus was just on playing. Now, I'm not just focused on myself, but also on my friends," said Megawati.

"I hope we can succeed this year, finishing at least runner-up. Hopefully, we can even win the championship. Especially since my teammates are fit and have been involved in preparations for the AVC Nations Cup," he added.

Breaking into the top two final rankings is indeed the target for the women's national team in the SEA V League. The Chairman of the Central Board of the Indonesian Volleyball Association (PP PBVSI), Imam Sudjarwo, stated that this target is set so that the national team can qualify for the AVC Nations Cup 2026. This is because only two tickets are available from the SEA V League.

Imam is optimistic that Megawati and her colleagues can meet the target. In addition to the fact that most of the players have been training together since the preparation for the AVC Nations Cup, Imam stated that they are also motivated after the national women's team briefly rose six places to rank 48th in the world. As of July 29, the national women's team's ranking has slightly dropped to the 50th position.

"Our target is to exceed that. We can beat Vietnam, we can beat Thailand. However, the manager said the target is runner-up. Hopefully, we can achieve the best," said Imam.

Optimism was also expressed by coach Octavian. Moreover, the women's national team has gained additional strength with the presence of Megawati and Arsela. Their presence is essential as the women's national team requires attackers in their offensive strategy.

During the AVC Nations Cup, Octavian stated that his players were able to defend well but struggled in their attacking efforts. Therefore, the presence of Megawati and Arsela will enhance the team's offensive strength.

"Therefore, the motivation to compete against Thailand is to learn how to match them. The motivation to face Vietnam is to find a way to defeat them again. When facing the Philippines, we must win," said the coach commonly known as Ooc.