Translated material
Model victory
The Russian team defeated the European champions
The Russian team finished its next match at the Volleyball World Cup in Japan with a brilliant victory over the Spanish team - 3:0 (25:21, 25:13, 25:15).Defeat is an unpleasant memory, but at the same time it is almost an ideal basis for subsequent analysis and work on mistakes. One can only imagine how many times our coaching staff replayed the failed European Championship final with the Spaniards in their minds and in reality. It’s good that the pre-Olympic season provides a chance, albeit not completely, to rehabilitate. There is the World Cup, where you can not only get revenge, but also at the same time take a step towards the Olympics, and then, who knows, maybe even win the most honorable trophy. True, it’s too early to think about this, but the match with the Spaniards took place at the right moment.
Firstly, with this meeting Vladimir Alekno’s team began the most difficult half of the tournament. And secondly, we could personally “throw out” our offenders from the fight for three Olympic spots, simultaneously reducing the number of their applicants. Before yesterday's match, the Puerto Rican team practically dropped out of this number, having failed to maintain a two-set handicap in the match with the Argentine team, followed by the Spaniards, without much delay. Now the circle of real applicants for trips has been reduced to four teams - Russia, Brazil, the USA and Bulgaria. Moreover, our chances so far look very promising.
The schedule of games in Fukuoka gave our team coach Vladimir Alekno an additional headache. Our team starts all three matches here at 15:00. local time, which completely breaks the desired rhythm of preparation for the game. It’s not entirely clear when to have lunch, rest, or train. To significantly reduce the damage from such a situation, there is only one way - to win quickly. Spain was not seen as a rival that could be beaten without extreme efforts. And the start of the fight only confirmed such doubts.
Having quickly eliminated our team's starting spurt, the Spaniards were already ahead by the first technical break - 8:5. Everything that happened during this period was reminiscent of that viscous, monstrously intense and energy-consuming volleyball that we saw in the September final of the European Championship in Moscow. There is no need to explain in whose favor this alignment is, and our players did everything to avoid the feeling of “déjà vu”. Our setter Vadim Khamuttskikh increased the speed of his passes, quickly enough with powerful serves he managed to unsettle the main Spanish finisher Israel Rodriguez, and, on the contrary, he managed to keep his technique at a consistently high level.
In this case, it was also beneficial that the Japanese spectators did not particularly distract the volleyball players from the process, and the game took place in an intimate setting. In such a situation, it is very difficult to maintain your emotions on a consistently high note, and playing with a cool head is often the better team in such cases. This is what the Russian team proved. In addition, the results of working on bugs were clearly visible during the game. Our blockers grew in the right place and in the right quantity, and the opponent’s attacks were also visible in defense. As a result, from the second half of the first set only one team dictated its will, and the Spaniards looked helpless.
The final statistics will certainly be a balm for Alekno’s coaching soul. It feels like Vadim Khamuttskikh was passing with a calculator in his pocket. Judge for yourself: Yuri Berezhko attacked 15 times, Sergei Tetyukhin and Semyon Poltavsky - 16 each. Surprisingly, each of these wingers carried out exactly ten attacks. You won’t envy an opponent who faces an equally serious threat from all sides.
We can forget about the Spaniards, and now all thoughts are about the final stage in Tokyo. It is to him that our coaching staff will try to bring the team to peak form. Therefore, today, on the day of the game with Egypt, the last strength training in the gym is planned. Yes, there is a risk of not beating Egypt with the maximum possible score, but this should have an effect at the finish of the two-week marathon.
Results. World Cup. 6th round. Russia - Spain - 3:0, Argentina - Puerto Rico - 3:2, USA - Tunisia - 3:1, Bulgaria - Korea - 3:0, Brazil - Australia - 3 :0, Japan - Egypt - 3:2. The leaders are: Russia - 6 wins, Brazil - 5, Bulgaria, USA, Argentina - 4 each.