15/02/2017 20:27
Dinamo MOSCOW rally to 3-0 home victory to secure spot in Playoffs 12
2017 CEV Volleyball Champions League - Men
Moscow, Russia, February 15, 2017. Dinamo MOSCOW rallied to a comprehensive 3-0 victory (25-21, 25-22, 27-25) in their home match with ISTANBUL BBSK on schedule for the fifth round of play in Pool A of the 2017 CEV Volleyball Champions League – Men. Dinamo improved their win-loss record to 3-2 to cement their second place in the current standing of the group and secure a spot in the Playoffs 12 of Europe’s elite competition.
Alexey Ostapenko set the pace of the game for Dinamo in the early stages of the first set, with the Muscovites cruising to an 8-3 lead at the first technical time-out. However, after two mistakes in a row by Alexander Markin, ISTANBUL BBSK reduced their gap down to three points. Dinamo coach Yury Marichev asked for a time-out and this produced the desired results. Konstantin Bakun propelled Dinamo to a five-point advantage at 16-11 but it was far from being over. Arslan Eksi, Tomi Coskovic and Özkan Hayirli helped ISTANBUL BBSK close in at 22-21 before Dinamo’s block and an error by Antonin Rouzier sealed a 25-21 win for the hosts.
The second set followed the same plot with Dinamo claiming 4-1 and 8-3 leads; after the technical time-out, Belarusian spiker Siarhei Antanovich joined the actions for ISTANBUL BBSK but Dinamo nevertheless extended their lead to 20-11. At this stage, the Muscovites relaxed a bit and ISTANBUL BBSK scored three times in a row with Eksi standing behind the service line. Dmitry Shcherbinin responded with an ace for Dinamo to make it 24-22 and a second set win for the Russians followed soon after with a pipe attack from Yury Berezhko.
The third set was more of a close affair. ISTANBUL BBSK edged ahead at the first technical time-out, leading 8-6 before Sergey Antypkin and Pavel Kruglov replaced Sergey Grankin and Konstantin Bakun, respectively by the score of 9-8 for the visitors. Grankin was soon back and an ace by the 2012 Olympic champion was the turning moment of the game – Dinamo had two match balls at 24-22, but ISTANBUL BBSK scored three times in a row to make it 25-24 in their favour. Bakun eventually became the hero of the match as he first found a way through a triple block and shortly afterwards blocked Rouzier to seal a 27-25 win for Dinamo to secure a comprehensive 3-0 victory and with it a spot in the Playoffs as well.
ISTANBUL BBSK head coach Hakan Özkan said: “Our opponent served really strong and this is something we could not handle. They dominated at the net, especially with their block. We could not do anything and this loss is the natural consequence of that.”
Dinamo MOSCOW head coach Yury Marichev: “Today’s match was very important for our future perspectives in this competition. My players looked much focussed, especially for the first two sets. Everything went according to plan and after claiming a comfortable advantage my players relaxed a bit, thus letting the opponent come back into the game. As a result, the final sections of the first and second sets were quite close. Once our opponent edged ahead in the third set, my players responded well and were able to draw level – and to win in the end. This is a very good thing – when it gets tough, my players do not give up and actually they march towards a victory.”
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