After two unsuccessful attempts to qualify, the Turks finally make it to VNL
Volleyball Challenger Cup 2023 winners Türkiye (source: tvf.org.tr)
Türkiye’s men’s national team made their dream to play in the Volleyball Nations League come true as they triumphed in Volleyball Challenger Cup 2023 for the first time, after two unsuccessful attempts to win the competition in 2019 and 2022. In a five-set final battle in Doha on Sunday, they overcame the resistance of hosts Qatar to snatch the trophy and the ticket to VNL 2024.
- Watch Volleyball Challenger Cup 2023 highlights and replays on VBTV
Türkiye persevered through the tough final to claim a 3-2 (25-13, 21-25, 25-18, 22-25, 15-9) victory over Qatar and celebrate their first gold in the competition and second medal, after the silver last year. Their superiority in the match was the result mostly of their better serving, with eight aces against none, and better blocking, with 14 stuffs against nine. Opposite Adis Lagumdzija led the match scorers with 21 points, followed by outside hitters Efe Bayram with 18 (three aces, three blocks) and Burutay Subasi with 15 (four blocks, one ace). Mubarak Dahi W W Hammad was Qatar’s most prolific player with 12 points.
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The first set of the final was completely one-sided. Enjoying a lot of noisy support from the stands, the Turks established total domination on the court to cruise to a convincing close. Efe Bayram was their leading scorer in the set. To his three kill blocks and one ace, he added three points in attack, including the set winner at 25-13. During the course of the second set, Qatar made some key changes to their line-up on the court that proved crucial to winning the set. With setter Borislav Georgiev and middle blocker Papemaguette Daigne in play, the home side levelled the score after 25-21. Pape himself brought in set point with a monster block and then capitalized on a perfect set from Georgiev to hammer the set winner.
Türkiye opened the third set with a 5-1 lead and never let go. They were masters on the court again while cruising to a convincing 25-18 win. But it was not over for Qatar just yet. They took control of the scoreboard with a 3-0 run at the start of set four and allowed the opponents to catch up only for a moment at 18-18. With Raimi Wadidie leading the way in offence, the home team took the set by 25-22 and once again levelled the match to…
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