VNL 2023: Pool 2 in Nagoya is over! 3 points for Serbia and leaders Japan. Poland and France ko

Volleyball Nations League 2023 continued today in Pool 1 in Nagoya, Japan, with Serbia who inflicted first defeat to Poland, claiming their second victory with a clear 3-0 (25:21, 25:19, 25:14), outplaying the FIVB Volleyball World Championship silver medallists on all elements.
Opposite and captain Drazen Luburic was the top scorer of the match with 19 points including an ace, while outside hitter Miran Kujundzic added other three aces towards 15-points. Middle blocker Karol Klos was Poland’s most prolific player on with 3 winning blocks and 7 attacks. Serbia improved to 2-2 and six points in seventh place, while Poland dropped to fourth with a 3-1 score and seven points.

On the same Pool, Kento Miyaura was hosts Japan’s golden substitution in their fourth VNL victory in as many games.
The sub-in opposite led his team to a 3-1 (25:27, 25:22, 25:21, 25:20) victory over defending champions France in the last Pool 2 game.
This result pushed Japan to the top of the current standings with 12 points and only two sets lost, and only USA have a chance to reclaim the first place after first week of play. Meanwhile, France are leaving Nagoya with a 1-3 win-loss record and just three points and the consequent 12th in the charts.
Outside hitters Ran Takahashi and captain Yuki Ishikawa led the home team’s scorers with 17 and 16 points, respectively, while Miyaura was decisive with his 13 points including a block and two aces, scoring 10 of them in the last set alone.
French opposite Theo Faure was the top scorer of the match on 21 points including four blocks, while outside hitters Kevin Tillie and Timothee Carle added 14 and 13, respectively, for France.

“For us, this game was very important, because France are so strong and so high in the hierarchy, and the win would bring us important points in the World Ranking. At the beginning, I was a little bit nervous, but I am happy to have entered and played well, especially in front of so many Japanese fans,” said Kento Miyaura after the match.

After a week’s break, both Japan and France will continue their VNL campaigns in the Pool 4 in Orleans. The Asians’ next match is against Canada on June 20 at 13:00 local time, while Hosts France will play against Argentina on June 21 at 21:00.

__________________

🏐| 2023 VOLLEYBALL NATIONS LEAGUE

— June 11, 2023 —

Pool 1 – Week 1 – Ottawa 🇨🇦
• 20:00 (Local Time) | Canada – USA 0-3 (22:25, 20:25, 20:25)
• 11:00 (Local Time) | Argentina – The Netherlands 3-2 (34:36, 25:20, 25:17, 20:25, 15:10)
• 14:30 (Local Time) | USA – Brazil 1-3 (19:25, 25:21, 15:25, 21:25)

Pool 2 – Week 1 – Nagoya 🇯🇵
• 12:40 (Local Time) | Slovenia – Iran 3-0 (25:19, 25:23, 25:23)

👉🏼 15:40 (Local Time) | Serbia – Poland 3-0 (25:21, 25:19, 25:14)

👉🏼 19:10 (Local Time) |Japan – France 3-1 (25:27, 25:22, 25:21, 25:20)

__________________

🏐| STANDINGS (updated on this day):
1. Japan 12
1. USA 9
3. Slovenia 9
4. Poland 7
5. Argentina 7
6. The Netherlands 6
7. Serbia 6
8. Brazil 6
9. Italy 6
10. Bulgaria 5
11. Iran 4
12. France 3
13. Cuba 3
14. Canada 2
15. China 2
16. Germany 0
__________________