VNL 2021: all results of June 15

Russia defeated Serbia 3-1 (25:23, 25:22, 22:25, 25:21) in the first match in the fourth week (Day 10) of Preliminary Round matches at the 2021 FIVB Volleyball Nations League on Tuesday.
Thus, Russia National Team ended Serbia’s winning streak.
Serbia had a chance to open the doors of the semifinals wide by beating Russia but the rival was on a high level at the first today’s match to remain in contention for the semifinals. Maxim Mikhaylov pulled the winners to success with 23 points, while Ilyas Kurkaev had 4 blocks.

Marko Podrascanin (SRB): “Before this match we knew that it would be an important match, especially for them. We started very well. In the first set we were 7-8 points ahead, but they showed again that they are a very good serving and blocking team. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to win the opening set, and in the next set it was also one or two balls that made the difference. In the end we remain without anything – no point from this match. I think that their comeback made a big difference. We now have 7 wins and 3 losses and ahead of us games against five teams with lower ranking in the standings. So I think that everything depends on us and we have everything in our hands. If we win these five games we will be for sure in the Final Four.”

Maxim Mikhaylov (RUS): “We are still looking for our game and our best shape, so it was important to win this game, because it gives us confidence and positive energy. In my opinion the most important thing in this game was that we won the first set. We were many points behind Serbia, but we managed to turn the score around and win it. It’s good, because we didn’t miss our chance also in the second set and eventually won the game. We gave our maximum, because this victory was very important for us.”

Australia claimed their first victory in the 2021 FIVB Volleyball Nations League with a five set triumph 3-2 (25:23, 25:22, 23:25, 18:25, 15:12) over Iran. Australia made Iran’s way to the semifinals rocky, and It was far from a quality match given nearly 70 errors were committed combined. Trent O’Dea was the top scorer for Australia with 17 points but through only 28.9% efficiency. He included 4 blocks in his scoring output, just as Nehemiah Mote, while Bardia Saadat led scorers for Iran with 16.

Mir Saeid Marouflakrani (IRI): “Actually we didn’t start so bad. We started well in the first set, but we gave them a chance to come back into the game to play good volleyball. I think that in sport sometimes you have good and bad days and today was our bad day. We need to focus on our next games and forget what happened today on the court. I can’t see anything positive on our game today, but there are many things that we have to focus on and to learn from this game. We have to always give 100% in every game, but we have to forget about this one. It was our bad day and we were not able to play volleyball.”

Nehemiah Mote (AUS): “Winning in five is symbolic of all the effort we have been putting in day by day from the players to staff. Iran came back, but we were able to bring it back in the last set. We will enjoy this victory very much. In the third set it was 21-22 and we had a perfect reception and we should have ended it. That gave Iran momentum and a bit of confidence and we were very unfortunate not to win this set. But to lose the third set and then come back, hold on and win in five is a testament to the attitude of everyone in the Australian jersey.”

Argentina were victorious against Bulgaria 3-1 (25:20, 16:25, 25:18, 25:18). Bruno Lima was the top scorer for the winners with 16 points.

Ezequiel Palacios (ARG): “I’m very happy because I had an opportunity to play today. In the previous weeks I was injured, so I was watching the games from outside the court. Today I really wanted to play and to win, and my dream came true. I think that our service was really good, sometimes we had some tough moments, some ups and downs, but it’s normal. I think the key to this victory was our service and our rotation.”

Radoslav Parapunov (BUL): “My personal opinion is that we should have won this game. We had an opportunity and our moments, and we should have turned it into our favour. But we couldn’t finish them.”

Japan extended their record to 6-4 and keep their options open for a Final Four berth following their clear victory over Germany at the competition.

Linus Weber (Germany): “I think that especially in the first set we played on a good level, but Japan played very well in defence and they are very well-known for their defence and their technical skills. Our sideout didn’t work well.”

Yuki Ishikawa (Japan): “We played really well in sideout – we were focused on this element all the time. Also in case of transitions we were able to make many points. And these two aspects were really important to win this game. The VNL is a very tough tournament, but this victory will give the team more energy for the upcoming last games.”

USA advanced to 5-5 at the VNL in Rimini after a three-set sweep of Italy who now dropped at 4-6.

Giulio Pinali (Italy): “It was a really difficult match for us – we played against the USA and in this team there are many players who played at the Olympic Games five years ago, so it was also a pleasure for us. We tried our best, to be there in every moment to play, to not get angry, because they really served strong. We played a lot of high balls, so it was really difficult for us.”

Taylor Sander (USA): “It was a good game. I haven’t been able to be on the court – it’s my first game, so I think it was interesting for everybody. I wasn’t perfect, but we put some pressure on them with our serve and did some good things in defence. It was important for us and we are just happy that we won tonight.”

Poland entered Week 4 of the 2021 FIVB Volleyball Nations League with a good performance to bring down a fighting Canada in three sets and remain on track for a ticket to the Final Four.

Sharone Vernon-Evans (Canada): “I think we missed some points in crucial moments. We played with one of the best teams in the world with the best serving player in the world – Wilfredo Leon. I think that it’s important that we fought hard and that we continued to spike and play well in defence and stay aggressive – when I’m saying about playing aggressive I think this gives us opportunities in the future.”

Bartosz Kurek (Poland): “For me it was a restart, because I had a little break inbetween games. We changed our starting line-up a lot, so it was a great feeling to be back on the court and to help my team get another victory. We are happy about it, but the goal remains the same – to be competitive in every game. I think that we played efficiently in attack, we put some pressure in important moments with our serve, especially Wilfredo Leon in the end of the second, but overall it was just how we competed against Canada, because they came out to play and they put a pressure on our side.”

Olympic champion Brazil beat EuroVolley runner-up Slovenia in the tie-break and hit the sixth consecutive victory in the competition: 3-2 (15:25, 25:22, 19:25, 25:13, 15:12). Thus, the winners are still in the lead of the competition. As for Slovenia, who remained in the top 4, after beating Russia and France in the tie-break, it failed to repeat the same against Brazil. The South American powerhouse reacted on time, even though it was trampled over by the rival in the opening set.
Now, Brazil has 9 wins and just one defeat.
Wallace de Souza highlighted the winning side with 18 points.

Jani Kovacic (Slovenia): “We fought hard today, but it was not enough. In the fifth set we were there, we played point-by-point, but at the end Lucarelli came in on serve and served three really good serves and it was the end of the match. We could have done some things better, we had our chances also before, but we didn’t take them. Congratulations to Brazil, because they deserved to win. For me personally my 100th appearance today with the National Team makes me really proud of myself and of my team. I’m happy that I have had the opportunity to play and work with our team and coaches and I hope to double this number.”

Bruno Rezende (Brazil): “We are really happy, because we knew that Slovenia play at a very high level, so their game was not surprise for us. I think in the first and third set our sideout worked very well. I didn’t made the right choices, but our team has to play difficult games too, to play even being behind. That was a big win to understand that our team has to play hard and stay together.”

The Netherlands put an end to its own four-game losing streak and recovered from a two-set deficit against France in the night in which Nimir Abdel-Aziz broke the FIVB Volleyball Nations League record for points in a single match!
They were led to it by an amazing Nimir Abdel-Aziz, who poured in 42 points (including 4 aces) to set the new single-game scoring record of the competition. The previous record was held by Chinese Jiang Chuan (37 points in the maiden edition, in 2018) also made against France. Young Théo Faure excelled on the losing side with 30 points (4 aces). Nicolas Le Goff set up 4 blocks, while Jénia Grebennikov made 75% digs (17/20).

Theo Faure (France): “I think that it was a great battle. We had a really good start, we also served very well and I think their performance was a little bit lower. After the second set they served really well and it was a tight battle until the end. It was a great game. It’s an unbelievable feeling to be the best scorer of my team tonight. I also didn’t have too much time on the court before so it was great today to play and I felt really good.”

Nimir Abdel-Aziz (The Netherlands): “We were playing against France and France are one of the best teams in the world, so it was of course a really difficult match. We saw that also in the first two sets than in the third set we started to play a little bit better and it became a big fight and we are really happy that we could win this match. Every victory at the VNL is special for us. We kept fighting, we started defending a bit, we served well and we put pressure on them and it was a really close game, so in the end one was a little bit luckier than the other.”

FIVB VNL 2021 – Results & Program

May 28, 2021 –
France – Bulgaria 3-0 (27:25, 25:21, 25:23)
Germany – Australia 3-0 (25:19, 25:18, 25:16)
Japan – Iran 3-0 (25:19, 25:22, 26:24)
Serbia – Slovenia 3-1 (22:25, 25:18, 36:34, 25:18)
The Netherlands – Russia 1-3 (19:25, 22:25, 25:18, 20:25)
USA – Canada 3-0 (25:17, 26:24, 25:20)
Poland – Italy 3-0 (25:19, 25:20, 25:18)
Brazil – Argentina 3-0 (31:29, 26:24, 25:16)
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May 29, 2021 –
Germany – France 2-3 (25:22, 22:25, 25:22, 16:25, 15:17)
Iran – Russia 1-3 (17:25, 25:20, 20:25, 17:25)
The Netherlands – Japan 2-3 (25:22, 25:23, 22:25, 17:25, 8:15)
Australia – Bulgaria 0:3 (21:25, 20:25, 20:25)
Poland – Serbia 3-1 (26:24, 25:19, 21:25, 25:15)
Italy – Slovenia 0-3 (23:25, 19:25, 15:25)
Argentina – Canada 0-3 (17:25, 21:25, 17:25)
USA – Brazil 0-3 (22:25, 23:25, 19:25)
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May 30, 2021 –
Australia – France 1-3 (26:28, 25:20, 14:25, 23:25)
The Netherlands – Iran 0-3 (18:25 23:25, 28:30)
Germany – Bulgaria 3-2 (19:25, 25:21, 22:25, 30:28, 15:11)
Russia – Japan 2-3 (26:28, 28:26, 25:20, 21:25, 14:16)
USA – Argentina 3-1 (23:25, 25:21, 25:15, 25:19)
Canada – Brazil 1-3 (17:25, 20:25, 25:22, 25:27)
Poland – Slovenia 1-3 (22:25, 25:23, 19:25, 23:25)
Serbia – Italy 3-1 (25:23, 22:25, 25:22, 25:18)
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June 3, 2021 –
Germany – Argentina 2-3 (19:25, 25:23, 25:17, 23:25, 13:15)
Iran – Canada 3-1 (22:25, 25:22, 25:22, 25:22)
Japan – Serbia 1-3 (25:18, 23:25, 22:25, 13:25)
Brazil – France 0-3 (37:39, 18:25, 28:30)
The Netherlands – Slovenia 0-3 (18:25, 15:25, 18:25)
Australia – Poland 0-3 (16:25, 10:25, 12:25)
Italy – Bulgaria 3-2 (25:19, 20:25, 25:13, 23:25, 15:12)
Russia – USA 3-1 (25:22, 25:19, 17:25, 25:19)
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June 4, 2021 –
Argentina – Slovenia 0-3 (19:25, 22:25, 18:25)
The Netherlands – Germany 3-2 (25:18, 23:25, 25:20, 23:25, 15:13)
Brazil – Japan 3-0 (25:20, 25:16, 25:20)
Serbia – France 3-2 (22:25, 24:26, 25:22, 25:23, 15:9)
Iran – Italy 3-1 (26:24, 29:27, 21:25, 25:22)
Poland – USA 3-0 (25:17, 28:26, 25:17)
Russia – Australia 3-0 (25:19, 26:24, 25:21)
Canada – Bulgaria 3-0 (28:26, 25:23, 25:16)
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June 5, 2021 –
The Netherlands – Argentina 0-3 (19:25, 20:25, 23:25)
Slovenia – Germany 1-3 (25:19, 20:25, 21:25, 20:25)
France – Japan 3-2 (21:25, 25:22, 24:26, 25:21, 15:11)
Brazil – Serbia 3-1 (23:25, 25:23, 25:15, 25:22)
Russia – Poland 1-3 (25:21, 19:25, 19:25, 14:25)
USA – Australia 3-0 (25:23, 25:20, 25:17)
Bulgaria – Iran 0-3 (20:25, 31:33, 22:25)
Canada – Italy 2-3 (19:25, 21:25, 25:21, 28:26, 11:15)
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June 9, 2021 –
Serbia – Germany 3-1 (19:25, 25:22, 25:18, 25:15)
Japan – Australia 3-1 (25:18, 21:25, 28:26, 26:24)
France – Russia 3-1 (22:25, 25:18, 30:28, 25:19)
Slovenia – Canada 3-0 (25:22, 25:19, 25:22)
Argentina – Italy 0-3 (28:30, 21:25, 20:25)
Iran – USA 3-0 (25:19, 25-23, 25:23)
Poland – Bulgaria 3-0 (25:19, 25:15, 25:12)
The Netherlands – Brazil 0-3 (19:25, 22:25, 25:27)
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June 10, 2021 –
Serbia – Iran 3-2 (21:25, 25:15, 26:28, 25:22, 15:8)
Russia – Canada 3-1 (25:18, 25:18, 23:25, 25:23)
France – Slovenia 2-3 (25:17, 25:19, 23:25, 19:25, 9:15)
Argentina – Australia 3-0 (25:18, 25:19, 25:20)
Germany – USA 0-3 (12:25, 18:25, 27:29)
Bulgaria – Brazil 0-3 (16:25, 22:25, 12:25)
Japan – Italy 3-2 (21:25, 25:22, 22:25, 25:19, 15:9)
Poland – The Netherlands 3-0 (25:14, 25:17, 25:16)
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June 11, 2021 –
Iran – Germany 2-3 (25:23, 20:25, 19:25, 25:19, 13:15)
Slovenia – Russia 3-2 (19:25, 25:23, 22:25, 25:20, 15:8)
Japan – Argentina 1-3 (32:30, 16:25, 18:25, 21:25)
The Netherlands – Bulgaria 2-3 (18:25, 25:18, 25:17, 22:25, 13:15)
Australia – Italy 0-3 (20:25, 22:25, 14:25)
USA – Serbia 1-3 (23:25, 17:25, 25:19, 25:27)
Canada – France 1-3 (25:20, 21:25, 22:25, 17:25)
Poland – Brazil 0-3 (17:25, 26:28, 19:25)
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👉🏼 June 15, 2021 –
Russia – Serbia 3-1 (25:23, 25:22, 22:25, 25:21)
Iran – Australia 2-3 (23,25, 22:25, 25:23, 25:18, 12:15)
Argentina – Bulgaria 3-1 (25:20, 16:25, 25:18, 25:18)
Japan – Germany 3-0 (25:18, 25:22, 25:20)
Italy – USA 0-3 (15:25, 18:25, 21:25)
Canada – Poland 0-3 (22:25, 23:25, 19:25)
Brazil – Slovenia 3-2 (15:25, 25:22, 19:25, 25:13, 15:12)
The Netherlands – France 3-2 (15:25, 22:25, 28:26, 25:23, 19:17)

👉🏼 Standings: Brazil 26, Poland 24, France 22, Slovenia 20, Russia 20, Serbia 19, Iran 18, Japan 16, USA 15, Argentina 14, Germany 13, Italy 11, Canada 7, Bulgaria 7, The Netherlands 6, Australia 2.
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June 16, 2021 –
Argentina – Russia 1-3 (19:25, 23:25, 25:21, 19:25)
Serbia – Bulgaria 3-0 (25:20, 25:17, 25:17)
Slovenia – Australia 3-1 (18:25, 25:18, 25:18, 25:17)
Japan – Poland 0-3 (14:25, 18:25, 19:25)
The Netherlands – Italy 1-3 (19:25, 23:25, 25:23, 21:25)
Canada – Germany 3-0 (25:17, 26:24, 25:21)
USA – France 1-3 (23:25, 25:22, 29:31, 22:25)
Iran – Brazil 1-3 (19:25, 25:23, 19:25, 21:25)
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June 17, 2021 –
Argentina – Serbia 3-0 (27:25, 25:20, 26:24)
Bulgaria – Russia 0-3 (17:25, 22:25, 17:25)
Japan – Canada 0-3 (22:25, 23:25, 18:25)
Australia – Brazil 0-3 (17:25, 22:25, 12:25)
Iran – Slovenia 1-3 (25:14, 20:25, 19:25, 30:32)
The Netherlands – USA 2-3 (25:21, 17:25, 25:23, 15:25, 13:15)
France – Italy 2-3 (19:25, 25:22, 20:25, 25:21, 12:15)
Germany – Poland 0-3 (22:25, 19:25, 20:25)
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June 21, 2021 –
Australia – Serbia 1-3 (16:25, 13:25, 25:19, 15:25)
Japan – Bulgaria 3-0 (25:23, 25:18, 25:14)
France – Iran 3-0 (25:21, 25:21, 25:19)
Canada – The Netherlands 3-0 (25:16, 25:16, 25:19)
Brazil – Italy 3-1 (25:19, 32:30, 22:25, 25:20)
Slovenia – USA 3-2 (28:30, 25:19, 21:25, 28:26, 15:13)
Poland – Argentina 3-0 (25:21, 25:22, 25:18)
Germany – Russia 1-3 (18:25, 18:25, 25:23, 15:25)
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June 22, 2021 –
Canada – Australia 3-0 (25:17, 25:8, 25:20)
Serbia – The Netherlands 3-2 (25:21, 21:25, 25:18, 21:25, 17:15)
Bulgaria – USA 0-3 (19:25, 24:26, 9:25)
Iran – Poland 0-3 (20:25, 20:25, 16:25)
Japan – Slovenia 0-3 (16:25, 16:25, 26:28)
France – Argentina 3-0 (26:24, 25:21, 25:22)
Brazil – Germany 3-0 (25:21, 25:21, 25:23)
Russia – Italy 3-2 (25:21, 16:25, 25:17, 19:25, 15:12)
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June 23, 2021 –
Australia – The Netherlands 0-3 (23:25, 19:25, 19:25)
Canada – Serbia 3-2 (17:25, 21:25, 25:17, 25:20, 17:15)
USA – Japan 3-0 (25:21, 25:23, 25:20)
France – Poland 3-2 (25:22, 21:25, 22:25, 25:20, 15:11)
Iran – Argentina 1-3 (31:33, 23:25, 32:30, 18:25)
Slovenia – Bulgaria 3-0 (25:23, 25:16, 25:18)
Italy – Germany 3-2 (25:12, 24:26, 25:22, 21:25, 15:13)
Brazil – Russia 0-3 (21:25, 26:28, 20:25)
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June 26, 2021 –
Semifinal 1: Brazil – France 3-0 (25:20, 25:18, 25:19)
Semifinal 2: Poland – Slovenia 3-0 (25:22, 25:21, 25:23)
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June 27, 2021 –
Final 3/4: France – Slovenia 3-0 (25:20, 25:18, 25:19)
Final 1/2: Brazil – Poland 3-1 (22:25, 25:23, 25:16, 25:14)
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