Russia rules Pool B of 2011 FIVB World League preliminary – Volleyball News
Russia continued with their successful run in the fifth week of the 2011 FIVB World League as they took out the German squad to retain first place.
Germany came to challenge Russia in the second-last week of the preliminary round robin. The Russians, trained and mentored head coach Vladimir Alekno, demonstrated great skill and edged out their rivals as Germany received a 2-3 (14-25, 25-22, 25-21, 23-25,
and 7-15) defeat on Thursday, June 23. The five-set match was witnessed by 3,751spectators at the Max-Schmeling-Halle competition hall in Berlin.
Russia has now become the only team of 2011 FIVB World League, which has maintained a winning streak of 9-0.
The match started out nice and slow as the visiting Russians eased in to the game. It was the first game that Russia was playing away from home and they played cautiously and so did Germany. Gradually, the game picked up pace as Russia’s Denis Biriukov created
problems for his opponents with strong serves. Germany’s Schops resisted and offered strong defence. Meanwhile, Russian players settled down in their positions and took the score by storm. Germany was restricted to only 14 points in the first set, while Russia
achieved the set-points.
After the first-set loss, the Germans attacked from different angles and hit the ball with accuracy. Kromm and Schops led the German side as they formed an excellent combination. Russia struggled to maintain momentum but couldn’t fully overcome the power
of their opponents. The hosts proved to be better in the second set and hit the equaliser with a three-point lead.
Germany took full advantage of the second-set win and served powerfully in the following set. They wanted to keep up the same energy level and extend their lead over Russia. It was not an easy task but the Germans tried their best. Russia responded and staged
a clever play as they used the back row attack and tried to put pressure on the Germans. However, the German team had the biggest source of inspiration in the form of local fans. They jumped on every little opportunity and covered the length of third with
4-point lead.
Russia fought its way back in the game in the fourth set. They broke the rhythm of the German spikers and hindered their performance with tactful play. Germany lost track and committed a few mistakes in the crucial period. The Russians took full advantage
of the opportunity and pulled off success in the fourth set and created a dead-lock of 2-2.
Germany was dragged under pressure in the final set of the game as Russia got its real form back. They continued with their attack attempts and beat the Germans on home soil. The home team collapsed completely at this point and lost the match.
Taras Khtei had the smile of joy after scoring the victory over Germany and he acknowledged that the match was tough. Germany served well and put a lot of pressure on Russia in the second and third set. He also congratulated his side for a combined effort.
The head coach of Russia, Vladimir Alekno also expressed delight about the success of his team. He commented: "I am very happy to have won the match. After we easily went through our matches at home it was our first game abroad. I am happy that we turned
the match, I am proud with my players."
German coach and captain regretted the loss of the important match but promised a better performance in the next game. Coach Raul Lozano thanked the enthusiastic local fans, who had come to support their team.
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