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TOKYO, Japan, September 22, 2015 – Three teams will go into the
final day of the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Cup Japan 2015 with
Rio 2016 Olympic Games qualification on their mind as Italy, USA
and Poland all sealed wins on Tuesday to set up what will be a
thrilling finish in Tokyo.
All three will go into the final day in search of a victory,
with Poland and Italy’s clash now carrying huge significance.
Poland are on 10 wins, meaning two sets against their Italian
rivals will see them finish in the top two. USA will need to
beat Argentina should Italy beat Poland earlier in the day to
guarantee themselves a place at next year’s Olympics.
Japan gave Poland a fright before the current table-toppers
picked up a 3-1 (24-26, 27-25, 25-21, 25-19) victory. Bartosz
Kurek may have topped the scorers for his side with 18 points,
but Michal Kubiak’s introduction midway through the match and
Pawel Zatorski’s efforts in defence lifted Poland as they sealed
their tenth win in Japan.
Yuki Ishikawa notched 24 points for Japan.
USA ensured they would be in the fight for an Olympic spot until
the last minute with a dominating straight sets (25-23, 26-24,
25-17) win over a demoralised Russia. Once again, USA’s wide
range of attack proved decisive with Aaron Russell contributing
15 points to the win.
Three Osmany Juantorena aces at the start of the fifth set
proved vital as Italy survived a tough challenge from Argentina,
picking up a 3-2 (22-25, 25-20, 25-21, 20-25, 16-14) win.
Juantorena scored 26 points, with Ivan Zaytsev on 25 as the
world No.4 stayed in the hunt for a top two finish. Argentina’s
hopes however are now all but over.
Egypt picked up their second win of the tournament, beating
Venezuela 3-1 (25-18, 20-25, 25-18, 25-20). Ahmed Abdelhay was
once again the brunt of Egypt’s attack with 15 points. Setter
Hossam Abdalla earned the Most Impressive Player award, his
well-spread plays keeping Venezuela guessing for much of the
match.
Canada piled on the misery for Iran as they claimed a
straight-set (25-23, 29-27, 26-24) win over their Asian rivals.
The victory – Canada’s fourth – meant they leapfrogged Iran in
the tables to go seventh. John Gordon Perrin and Justin Duff
both led Glenn Hoag's side on 13 and 12 points respectively.
Australia needed little effort to claim their third victory at
the tournament with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-19) win over
Tunisia. Australia captain Thomas Edgar managed 17 attacks and
three blocks to win the Most Impressive Player award. Samuel
Walker helped out with 11 more points for coach Roberto
Santilli’s squad. |
