Pedro Cunha has his eyes on the SWATCH FIVB title: 2011 Beijing Grand Slam – Beach Volleyball
Brazil’s Pedro Henrique Cunha and Pedro Solberg Salgado clinched success, while playing at the Qualification Tournament of the Beijing Grand Slam on Tuesday, June 7. After making a good start in the tournament, Cunha is eyeing the top honour of the tournament.
His recent statement has created a lot of buzz in the media. He said: “Why not? That’s our goal. Our game is showing that we are able to do it.”
The 2011 FIVB Beach Volleyball Swatch World Tour Beijing Grand Slam was kicked off on Monday with the Country Quota Playoffs and entered the Qualification Tournament on Tuesday. Brazilian hotshots played two matches on Tuesday and finished the day without
the loss of a single set. They defeated duos from Belgium and Italy, respectively. The matches were played at the Chaoyang Park in Beijing. The success in the Qualification Tournament has enabled them to play at the 32-team Main Draw stage of the tournament
on Wednesday. Their morale is high and they are determined to draw world-wide attention with their spectacular performance.
First match
The Brazilian pair edged out Belgium’s Audry Frankart and Verschueren in the first match of the day as they proved to be too strong for their opponents. The commanding serves and swift spikes helped them dominate the Belgian players. The first set of the
match ended at 21-17, while second set was also successful for Cunha/Pedro. They worked out great shots and didn’t allow rivals to stand in their way. Brazilian team posted a 21-16 in second set and marched away with the tag of winners.
Second match
The second match of the day brought Matteo Martino and Nicolai Paolo of Italy in competition with Cunha and Pedro. The Italian pair started off well but soon lost their tempo. The heavy strike of volleys from Pedro devastated them. They played under pressure
and made unforced mistakes. In the first set of the game, they could only make 14 points, while the Brazilian duo achieved set point.
Second set was no different and the Brazilian side had the advantage. Pedro/Cunha came from different angles and secured a second set with the same score of 21-14. They finished the second match in 32 minutes and carved their names on the roster of Main-Draw
teams.
Pedro was very delighted at the victory. He stated: “It’s a great day I think, we played very, very well.” Speaking of their partnership, he said that more they will play together, their experience will rise. Cunha said: “We need to improve our game and
the result will follow. We played in the semi-finals last tournament and we expect to repeat that, fortunately to get into the final.”
The two Brazilian top-guns re-united recently. It was their fourth event together since their re-union. They finished fourth in the last SWATCH FIVB event in Prague, Czech Republic. However, the duo is all set to claw their way to the final round of the
Beijing Grand Slam this year.
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