Ningbo, China, August 3, 2019 - Turkey registered their second consecutive victory as they outclassed Czech Republic 3-1 (27-25, 25-20, 17-25, 25-20) in Pool B of the Tokyo Volleyball Qualification at Beilun Sports and Arts Centre in Ningbo on Saturday.
Turkey coach Giovanni Guidetti: “I am happy with the victory today. Team Czech Republic produced troubles for us in the second and third sets. It was not an easy game as we expected as Czech Republic did well in the European League and Challenger Cup. So we had to pay attention to them.
“I am happy with the result of 3-1 because we still have some weaknesses as a team. Now we are where we want to be with just one more match left to fight for the spot in the Olympic Games, so this is a big victory for us. Tomorrow, we will face China. I know our chance is not be very big, but we will do the best as we can.”
Turkey captain Eda Erdem Dundar: “This second match is important for us and now we have two wins. In the first two sets of the match today, we served very well and limited our opponents to play their normal side-out game. In the third set, they also improve their service and put pressure on our reception. We had several unforced errors because of that. Then in the fourth set I think we played more our game with good service, fast attacks and some excellent digs. We are so happy and we look forward to the match against China tomorrow.”
Czech coach Ionnis Athanasopoulos: “I want to congratulate Turkey for their victory. It was very fair. In the first two sets, we could not pass well and even could not do anything because Turkey served aggressively. But when they also made some mistakes, we had chances to do something in the latter half of second set. In the third set, we gave pressure to our opponents with our improved service and that is why we won the set.
“It is very difficult to play against these big teams like China and Turkey. They have good combinations and a tall opposite and middle blockers. We cannot do anything to stop them. We will do our best to get better as a team for the future because we are a young team. We have to learn from all the top teams to improve our service and reception, and also get used to playing in difficult situations like today.”
Czech captain Pavla Smidova: “This game was difficult for us. Turkey’s service was really good and we committed many mistakes in reception. But I am happy that we won the third set as we made some adjustment and improvement. We will see how it will be to take on Germany tomorrow.”