Colombia coach Antonio Rizola Neto was happy with his team
Almaty, Kazakhstan, July 15, 2017 – Colombia celebrated its third win in FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix, defeating hosts Kazakhstan 3-1 (25-21, 20-25, 27-25, 25-16) on Saturday at the Baluan Sholak Sports Palace.
Colombia coach Antonio Rizola Neto: “I am very happy because, yesterday, my team won for their attitude. Today, we won because of good service, and the attacks were executed correctly. Although, it was very difficult to win against Kazakhstan today. The team has a good coach and excellent players. I got tired because the level of concentration kept changing. But day by day, we just need to play with much focus and the right attitude.”
Colombia captain Maria Alejandra Marin: “We played with much concentration and focus. But we also enjoyed the match, and always tried to play with a smile. We have been practicing really hard, and it paid off. I am delighted for today’s win."
Kazakhstan coach Vyacheslav Shapran: “I would like to congratulate Colombia, their coach and their players. Last year, we won against Colombia, but they have a new coach and they became stronger. They improved their game from last year. I know they lost several strong players in the main squad, but they won today. I think the third set was the key moment. I have promised that we will improve our game, and I think we did. If we won the third set, we could have a chance to win the match, but we could not do it. We still need to improve the communication of our setters and spiker. We may have had some problems in discipline, but I think our setter played better today.”
Kazakhstan captain Radmila Beresneva: “It was a tough game, and it was very hard to play against this team. Unfortunately, in the fourth set, we encountered problems with our focus. I think the main reason of this defeat is the short bench that we have. We did not have enough players for the substitution, and we could not make our game better with their help. Anyway, we will meet one more time in the World Grand Prix. We will see who will play better next time because I want my team to win.”