Poland won the clash of the titans against Brazil with 3:2 (22-25,25-19,19-25,25-23,15-12). This became the best birthday present for Wilfredo Leon, who turns 31 today, and setter Marcin Janusz, who turns 30. With the two points won, the team led by Nikola Grbic continues to the quarterfinals. For Brazil, it remains to hope to advance as the third-best team.
The first set passed with the advantage of "seleção," who built a solid lead early on but allowed "drużyna polska" to lead 22:21 at the end of the set after an ace from Kurek. The same player was blocked by Fabio, which put the Brazilians ahead. A great serve from Leal followed, and an attack from Lucarelli, and the first set point was a fact. The Brazilians closed the set after an ace from Leal.

Poland started the second set with a bang, taking a 5:0 lead, after which they did not allow the Brazilians to make a comeback and closed the set with an ace from Kurek at 25:19.

In the third set, the tables turned, with "seleção" now taking the initiative. The first timeout for Grbic came at 11:8 for the Brazilians. Poland used its second timeout at 15:11 for the opponent, but until the end of the set, they could not counter the strong play of the Brazilians. Even Semeniuk's two aces at the end of the set did not help. The set will be remembered for the phenomenal defense of Garlan, who parried a ball that bounced off the block with his chest, allowing the Brazilians to organize a successful attack later.

The fourth set also did not start well for Poland, who had to catch up in the score. After the points were tied several times (4:4, 5:5, 8:8, 10:10, 12:12, 14:14, 16:16, 17:17), Huber stood at the service line. His powerful serve allowed Leon to spike a counter-ball, and the Poles took the lead. An ace from the middle blocker followed, bringing "drużyna polska"'s service points to 10. Again, Huber blocked an attack by Lucarelli for 23:20. A pipe from Leon led to the first set point, which the Brazilians postponed twice. At 24:23, Lucas made a service error, and a tie-break had to determine the winner.
In the final set, Poland managed to take a 4:1 lead, with Huber delivering two aces. Leon was strongly involved, maintaining the difference. A point from Kurek led to a side change at 8:4 for Poland. Darlan's strong play led to a tie at 12:12, which came after a block against Leon. Kurek put Poland ahead by one point, and Leon ended the match with two consecutive aces.

Birthday boy Leon was the top scorer with 26 points (2 blocks and 3 aces). The Poles won 14 points from serve against only 3 for the Brazilians. For Brazil, Adriano and Lucarelli each scored 18 points.

photos : volleyballworld.com