The Brazilian national team successfully concluded its participation in the second week of the Volleyball Nations League. The South Americans dramatically prevailed over Canada with a 3:2 (25:17, 25:23, 28:26, 22:25, 17:15) victory in their last match of the tournament in Ljubljana.
The match offered an extremely contested battle, lasting five sets. The Brazilians started convincingly and took the first set without much trouble with 25:17. Canada, however, reacted excellently and equalized after a 25:23 win in the second set.
The third set turned into one of the most dramatic in the tournament. After numerous turnarounds, Brazil managed to snatch a 28:26 victory and once again took the lead. The Canadians did not give up and with strong play in attack and on serve won the fourth set with 25:22, forcing the match into a tie-break.
The decisive part was also full of tension. The two teams went point for point until the very end, but the Brazilians showed more composure, closing the match at 17:15 and celebrating their fifth victory in the VNL.
Brazil had an advantage in attack (61:57) and blocking (11:9), while Canada was more effective from the serve with 5 aces against only 1 for their opponent. The South Americans also received more points from opponent's errors (42:37), which also proved crucial in the final outcome of the match.
In defense, Brazil recorded more digs (85:70), while Canada excelled in reception (95:83).
The top scorer for Canada was Shaw with 19 points, while Varga added 18. For Brazil, Adriano scored 17 points, and Darlan finished with 13.
| Statistic | Canada | Brazil |
|---|---|---|
| Attack | 57 | 61 |
| Block | 9 | 11 |
| Aces | 5 | 1 |
| Points from opponent's errors | 37 | 42 |
| Total points | 108 | 115 |
| Digs | 70 | 85 |
| Reception | 95 | 83 |
Brazil won thanks to its slight superiority in attack and blocking, as well as better play in defense. Canada compensated with a stronger serve and more stable reception, but in the most important points of the tie-break, the South Americans showed greater composure.
With the victory, Brazil accumulated 13 points and finished the second week in eighth place in the provisional standings. Canada remained with 8 points in 16th position.
Photo:volleyballworld.com
