16/01/2014 11:00
Six teams claim tickets to Main Draw in Anapa
2014 CEV Beach Volleyball Satellite - Anapa
Anapa, Russia, January 16, 2014. Twelve teams embarked on Thursday on a quest to make the Main Draw of the 2014 CEV indoor Satellite in Anapa. With Russia’s Sergey Prokopiev/Ilya Leshukov and Germany’s Philipp Arne Bergmann/Malte Stiel that already progressed to the next stage due to their entry points, six matches were played to complete the composition of the Main Draw which will get underway on Friday.
Martin Tichy and Martin David of the Czech Republic easily beat Ukraine’s Vladyslav Iemelianchyk and Denys Denysenko in straight sets (21-14, 21-18) while another Ukrainian duo – Iaroslav Gordieiev and Eduard Reznik – needed less than half an hour to beat Italy’s Filippo Romani and Gianluca Oligeri (21-11, 21-14) to open the program of the day at the Volley Grad in Anapa.
There will be no Italian team at all in the Main Draw since the other pair from the boot-shape peninsula withdrew from the competition. Emanuele Monduzzi felt pain in his knee as he and compatriot Matteo Galli were playing Norway’s Lars Tveit Retterholt and Henning Kjemperud Olsen. Monduzzi and Galli pulled out of the competition after losing the first set and by the time they were trailing 6:17 in the second set.
The third seed of the qualification, Germany’s Armin Dollinger and Clemens Wickler, routed Israel’s Alon Sanderovich and Netanel Amiram Ohana, with the Israelis taking only eight points in the second set (21-18, 21-8). Wickler is a gold medallist from last year’s FIVB U19 World Championship – with partner Moritz Reichert. However, the second Israeli team caused a little sensation as Ariel Hilman and Sean Faiga (pictured) beat Austria’s Michael Murauer and Florian Schnetzer at the tie-break (21-19, 14-21, and 15-13). Hilman and Faiga easily controlled the game in the first set before their opponents responded by taking the second. Hilman and Faiga led the way by seven points in the tie-break (13:6) before the Austrians fought their way back reducing their gap to one point (14:13). In the end Hilman and Faiga scored the next rally to cash their ticket to the Main Draw.
Hilman was very happy with this achievement: “We did a good job and are very happy with this victory. This is our first tournament of the year and I am happy that we feel good and are in a good shape. We prepared very well at home and then came here 10 days before the start of the tournament. In the second set we lost concentration for a while but we did not panic and continued to play our game. This is my first indoor tournament and to me it seems to be easier to play indoors because you are not disturbed by the wind or the sun. Nothing bothers you during the game. Actually I am very happy with the improvement we have made recently.”
The last ticket to the Main Draw was claimed by Belarus Aliaksandr Dziadkou/Yauhen Vishneuski – the bronze medallists from the 2012 CEV U23 Beach Volleyball European Championship in Assen – who beat Austria’s Daniel Hupfer and Julian Hörl 21-15, 21-16.
The matches of the Main Draw will start on Friday with the women’s tournament also getting underway after the Country Quota and Qualification were cancelled.
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