Omsk, Russia, September 20, 2008 – On Day 4 of the 2009 World Grand Prix qualifier in Omsk, Russia, Netherlands booked the second European ticket to the 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix by beating Germany in straight sets. Russia overpowered Serbia 3:1, whilst 2006 European champions Italy almost collapsed against France (3:2). In the first match of the day at SKK im Blinova sports hall, the Netherlands beat Germany in straight sets (25-23, 25-21, 25-14). Italy downed France after five hard-fought sets (25-27, 25-15, 19-25, 25-19, 15-5) and hosts Russia defeated Serbia 3:1 (25-20, 25-14, 26-28, 25-19) in front of 3,850 happy spectators. Serbia apparently took notice of the huge crowd cheering for Russia as they could not match the intensity that Russia showed early in the first set. The hosts picked on Serbian Captain Jelena Nikolic, who made too many mistakes on attack. A rally on an exchange of back-row spikes from Jovana Brakocevic and Olga Fateeva was a highlight in the middle of the set. Maria Borodakova blocked a Stefana Veljkovic attack to end the set at 25-20. Russia continued their string of success in set No. 2, firing wildly. Natalia Safronova scored six points, Fateeva five to take a comfortable 2-0 set lead. The beginning of the third set was a see-saw battle. The Russian stars put a lot of pressure on the Serbian defense. Ekaterina Gamova played smart offence, targeting the empty spaces of the Serbian court. However, a 20-17 lead was not enough to overcome a hard-fighting Serbian team. Ivana Derisilo-Stankovic served strongly to turn around the score (20-22). From 22-22 to 26-26, neither Russia nor Serbia could bring about a decision. Veljkovic blocked for a third Serbian set point, and Brakocevic re-raised the Serbian hopes with a blistering winner from the right (28-26). Nevertheless, the Russians turned up the head in set No. 4. Another smash by Safranova gave the home team their first match point. Finally Brakocevic sent it wide causing a cheer of relief and happiness amongst the 3,850 faithful Russian fans.
In the first match of Day 4 between Germany and the Netherlands, the Dutch team pulled away in the middle of set No. 1 with Manon Flier and Debby Stam on fire (21-16). The flying Dutch continued to hit hard but were blocked by outstanding German Christiane Fürst who scored 8 points in the first set. Germany leveled to 23, but Stam ended the set with a burning spike at 25-23. The team of Head Coach Giovanni Guidetti was unable to replicate their previous day’s excellent performances, and when they were trailing 7-11 in the second set, Guidetti called a time out to reorganize his squad. Cornelia Dumler made up for her earlier mistakes by hitting hard on the left. But it was already too late. Flier missed an opportunity to put away the set for the Netherlands on a spike, but closed it out for the Oranjes a minute later (25-21). Guidetti brought in Sabrina Ross for 17-year-old Saskia Hippe to change tactics. Nevertheless, the Dutch express seemed to be unstoppable with Ingrid Visser and Alice Bloom scoring regularly. Furthermore, the Dutch defense system proved too strong for the predictable German offensive actions. Visser finished the match with a searing winner from the middle, securing the Dutch team their well-deserved ticket to the 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix. “Our defense was not good enough to score on counter attacks”, said German Head Coach Giovanni Guidetti. “As consequence we did not manage to overcome the strong Dutch block.” Asked for a possible extension of his contract as Dutch Head Coach, which ends on Sunday, Avital Selinger explained: “It’s off my hands to decide about such things. We did our best. If there’s a better solution for the future, I’m the first supporting the new crew.” It seemed to be quite an easy task for the Italians in the first set against France, starting off with a clear advantage at the second technical time out. But Venezuela, who have not won a single set in the previous three matches, fought back strongly, with Audrey Syren combining with Alexia Djilali and spiking through the weak Italian’s blockers. A fabulous block from Christina Baur against Lucia Bosetti gave the French their second set point, and Djilali again wrapped-up the first set in France’s favor. Martina Guiggi caught the French defence off-guard affecting their rhythm. The Bleus committed crucial mistakes on their attack to give their opponents an unreachable lead in the second set. But the Azzurre did not maintain their momentum. They could not manage the French outside players Djilali and Amandine Mauricette off-speed hit on the slide. Captain Séverine Lienard stepped up in the scoring with her intelligent shot selection. France took the set on a Lucia Cristanti mistake at 25-19. Italy buckled down to pull back, levelling the game after four sets. Serena Ortolani fired wild to start the fifth and deciding set. Italy pulled away while France’s stumbled in attack and defense. Valentina Fiorin and Lucia Bosetti scored crucial hits until a Guiggi service winner brought up match point, and Ortolani ended the set 15-5 and the match. Djilali finished with a game-high 24 points. There will be 12 participating teams next year in the World Grand Prix with the tournament scheduled for a four-week period in July and August. The Preliminary Rounds are set for July 31 to August 16, including a stop in Brazil for the first time, and the Final Round from August 19-23 in Tokyo, Japan. |
