After Portugal's sensational victory over Cuba at the Mall Of Asia Arena, came the second surprise on the first day of the World Championship - Turkey outplayed Japan with a categorical 3:0 sets (25:19, 25:23, 25:19). This was also Slobodan Kovac's official debut as coach of Turkey at the World Championship. We recall that there was a variant for Radostin Stoychev to take over our southern neighbors.
Match development
Turkey started with a strong block and controlled the third set - 16:14, 18:14 and 19:14. Bedrihan distinguished himself with a key block for 21:16, and the statistics already showed 6:4 blocks for the Turks.
Mandaraci brought 22:17, and the little brother Lagumdzija shone with a pipe for 23:17. Japan took a video challenge and reduced it to 22:18, but Matic from the center made the score 23:18. A powerful serve by Mandaraci at 111 km/h led to the first match point - 24:18. An error from the serve led to the second match point. Adis Lagumdzija finished the match with a technical release on the block from zone 2 - and Turkey celebrated with a clean victory.
Statistics from the match
| Team | Attack | Block | Serve | Opponent's mistakes | Total points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 33 | 6 | 1 | 21 | 61 |
| Turkey | 37 | 8 | 7 | 23 | 75 |
Turkey prevailed in every element - especially block (8:6) and serve (7:1). This deprived Japan of its usual rhythm and fast play through the center.
Individual performances
| Japan | Points | Turkey | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miyaura (#4) | 13 | Mandaraci (#9) | 17 |
| Ishikawa (#14) | 10 | A. Lagumdzija (#12) | 15 |
Mandaraci was the real leader with 17 points, excellently supported by Alex Nikolov's former teammate in Lube, Adis Lagumdzija, with 15.
For the Japanese, Miyaura and Ishikawa did everything possible, but their team was visibly weaker in crucial moments.
The Day of Upsets
Portugal over Cuba 3:1 and Turkey over Japan 3:0 – the second day of the championship will already be remembered as the day of upsets. The European underdogs showed character, block and discipline, with which they overthrew two of the favorites.
photos:volleyballworld.com
