In September 2018, Ding Xia participated in her second Asian Games, held in Jakarta, Indonesia. Despite the absence of key player Zhang Changning, Team China displayed their absolute dominance in Asia at the tournament, winning eight consecutive matches with 3-0 scores to achieve gold. Their opponents included South Korea, Japan, Thailand and the Philippines. Later that month, Ding Xia flew with her team to Japan to participate in the FIVB World Championships. After 4 consecutive wins, China lost to Italy 1-3 in the first round of the pool stage. In the second round, China beat their main rival USA, securing a spot in the Final Six one round in advance. In the Final Six, China secured victories against the USA and Netherlands. However, the team lost to Italy again in the semi-finals after a grueling five set match, before winning the Netherlands in the bronze medal match, managing to secure a spot on the podium.