Recap of Day 6. Today the last matches of group stage.
3 min read
POOL A @ Florence
Belgium – Dominican Republic 3-0 (25-18, 25-13, 25-17)
Not even Belgium didn’t have any problems against Dominican Republic, scoring a 3-0 victory and finishing the group stage with a 3-2 score. Hendrik Tuerlinckx was the best scorer of the match with 14 points.
Argentina – Slovenia 3-2 (25-18, 22-25, 27-29, 25-17, 15-13)
Argentina won against Slovenia in a five-set battle to stay in the race and to grab a really important victory.
This win gives to Julio Velasco’s team more chances in last match against Japan: Argentina need two sets to qualify for the second round. In this match, there were many ups and downs from both sides, and Slovenia have suffered her first-ever defeat at the World Championship. Bruno Lima was the top scorer for Argentina with 18 points, while Mitja Gasparini had 19 on the other side.
Standings
Italy 4-0 (12 points)
Belgium 3-2 (10 points)
Slovenia 3-1 (8 points)
Argentina 2-2 (6 points)
Japan 1-3 (3 points)
Dominican Republic 0-4 (0)
POOL B @ Ruse
Egypt – Netherlands 1-3 (18-25, 21-25, 25-23, 16-25)
The Netherlands have finished the group stage with a 4-1 score, which gives them an important chance to qualify for the Final Six. The Dutch team defeated Egypt in four sets and Egypt are going back to home. Wouter Ter Maat had a good match, scoring 26 points, while Hisham Ewais had 18 points.
Brazil – Canada 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 25-18)
Brazil made the first defeat of Canada at world champkionship. Brazil were in a difficult situation, in fact a defeat against Canada could have been a problem. In order to stay in a good position for the second round, Brazil needed a victory, and they won. Brazil have opened the match by winning the first sets, while Canada couldn’t do anything to stop the rival. Wallace de Souza, Brazil, was the top scorer with 24 points, while on the other side John Perrin ended the match with 18 points.
Standings
Netherlands 4-1 (11 points)
Canada 3-1 (9 points)
France 2-2 (8 points)
Brazil 3-1 (8 points)
Egypt 1-3 (3)
China 0-4 (0)
POOL C @ Bari
Russia – Cameroon 3-0 (25-16, 30-28, 25-15)
Russia have also scored an undoubted victory against Cameroon, even if they won the second extended set 30-28! Victor Poletaev was the top scorer with 13 points, and Cameroon have ended his world championship with 1-4 score, but with some convincing performances!
Australia – Tunisia 3-1 (16-25, 25-17, 25-19, 25-16)
Australia let Tunisia win the first set, then they destroyed them in the other three sets scoring the second win at the World Championship. In Australia, Lincoln Williams had a good match, finishing with 25 points, while Mohamed Miladi and Ali Bongui had 13 points each on the other side. With this victory, the Aussies have confirmed the fourth place in Pool C and in the second round, they will play in Pool F. Against which team, are not known at this moment.
Standings
USA 4-0 (10 points)
Serbia 3-1 (10 points)
Russia 3-1 (9 points)
Australia 2-3 (7 points)
Cameroon 1-4 (3)
Tunisia 0-4 (0)
POOL D @ Varna
Cuba – Puerto Rico 3-1 (25-15, 22-25, 25-21, 25-17)
Both teams are leaving the world championship, Cuba and Puerto Rico played yesterday and the match ended with a 3-1 victory for Cuba.
Iran – Poland 0-3 (21-25, 20-25, 22-25)
Poland destroy Iran in three sets! The current World Champions have made a huge step towards the Final Six. Yes, there is the second round to be played, but if Poland get there with a 5-0 score, they will probably need only one more win to advance to the Final Six! In this match against Iran, Poland had a so absolut control in the first two sets, while in the third set Iran was always ahead, until the end. Michal Kubiak was the best scorer with 12 points, while other three players ended the match with double digits: Nowakowski, Szalpuk, Kurek with 10 points each. In Iran, Amir Ghafour scored 17 points.
Standings
Poland 4-0 (12 points)
Iran 3-1 (9 points)
Bulgaria 3-1 (9 points)
Finland 2-2 (5)
Cuba 1-4 (3)
Puerto Rico 0-5 (1)