Trentino edges Cruzeiro; Rayyan wins last match

RAAJIV TRIPATHI DOHA

DEFENDING champion Trentino Diatec held off Sada Cruzeiro Volei in a marathon five-setter and topped the group A of the FIVB World Clubs Men’s Volleyball Championship on Tuesday. At the Women’s Sports Hall in Aspire, the Italian giant downed the Brazilian outfit by 25-23 24-26 26-24 19-25 21-19 in two hours and four minutes.

Host Al Rayyan Club salvaged its pride by thrashing Tigres de Nuevo Leon of Mexico in straight sets. In their last pool A match, the local side, playing its first championship, needed just 61 minutes to win by 25-13 25-17 25-18. With this win, Rayyan finished third and Tigres took the bottom place in the fourteam pool.

Mikko Oivanen and David Lee won the bulk of the Rayyan’s points. Oivanen accounted for 10 and Lee chipped in with eight. Local lad Waleed Mubarak Dahi was fielded late into the match and he impressed with seven points. The 202-cm player rifled the match-winning smash after Rodrigo Santana blocked to set up the match point.

Both three-time-in-a-row winner Trentino and Cruzeiro having two wins in as many matches under their belt, however this match was crucial for the European outfit to regain its rhythm and touch before the tough semi-finals.

And the way it was rattled by Cruzeiro especially in the fourth set, the victory of Trentino was looking anything but a reality.

But the three times CEV Champions League winner Trentino just about managed to smoothen out the rough edges in the decider, in which both looked a bit jittery and there were 11 service faults, besides unforced errors.

Earlier it was Trentino which forged 3-1 ahead. Cruzeiro then led from 6-6 onwards to 12-12. Trentino wrested the initiative but Cruzeiro turned back the heat from 13-13 and gained the first match point with Douglas Cordeiro blocking Osmany Juantorena.

Marcos Leal Acacio served into the net and Trentino escaped. Juantorena made amends and helped team get the match point with a smash.

Trentino netted its service and let the Brazil team off the hook. It was Cruzeiro’s turn to set up another match point through Wallace de Souza’s brilliant spike. Cruzeiro however could not pull off the needed point and this dramatic preceedings kept happening till 18-18.

Matteo provided a pulsating finish as he foiled Wallace at the net, sparking a wave of joy in the team and among a small band of dedicated fans.

Trentino captain Matey Kaziyski said, “It was a great match for us not because because we fought well till the end and won it in five sets. But we got the taste of the tough matches that are going to follow this week.” Bulgarian coach Radostin Stoytchev of Trentino, who has been in the similar situations a plenty of time, commented: “We’re highly satisfied with the tough way Trentino played. This is the strongest team from Brazil and my players showed their toughness and won the match to top the pool.” “For us the most important things is the final. I just hope that my team maintains this high level performance till our aim of retaining the title is achieved,” added Stoytchev.

Rabita qualifies for semis Holder Rabita Baku overcame Bohai Bank Tianjin from China by 25-20 25-22 18-25 25-21 to qualify for the semifinals of the women’s event.

The four-set win in one hour and 45 minutes was the first one for the Azerbaijan team in the pool, while the Asian champion lost both its matches and went out of the race for the last four stage.

The group was topped by Sollys Nestle from Brazil. The other pool will be decided on Wednesday and the top two teams from each pool will get a chance to play for the two berths of the final.

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