Lausanne, Switzerland, July 7, 2017 - Italy take on USA Saturday in Kunshan, looking to bounce back from their opening day defeat to hosts China in four sets. The North Americans, meanwhile, will be seeking to ride the momemntum of their opening day tie-break win over Russia. It is the 19th time the two sides come head-to-head in the history of the FIVB World Grand Prix, with USA leading the series 10-8.
Head-to-Head• Italy and United States have met 18 times at the World Grand Prix, with 10 victories for USA and eight for the Italians.
• United States have won seven of their last eight World Grand Prix matches against Italy, with the exception being the 3-2 defeat in the final round in 2013.
• Their last encounter in a major competition came at the 2016 Olympic Games, when United States won 3-1 in the group stage on their way to the bronze medal.
• In 2002, these sides faced each other in the final of the World Championship. Italy won after five sets to claim their only world title to date.
Italy• Italy lost 3-1 in their opening match against China, gifting them 34 points from errors.
• Indre Sorokaite scored a match-high 14 points against China. In total 11 Italian players scored points in that match.
• Italy also started their 2015 and 2016 World Grand Prix tournaments with a defeat, but then won their second matches in these campaigns.
United States• United States beat Russia 3-2 in their opening match, despite 35 errors.
• Kelly Murphy scored 19 points in that match, most by any player from either team.
• USA began last year's campaign with two wins, and finished the 2016 World Grand Prix losing 3-2 against Brazil in the final.
• The last time USA started a World Grand Prix tournament with two five-set matches was in 1996, when they needed a deciding set in their first four games.