The opposite came off the bench to register 15 points in Brazil’s victory over Korea
Thaisa scored 11 points in her first match with the Brazilian national team in five years
Brazilian fans had the celebration they long waited for on Wednesday, as the country’s national team triumphed in front of 8,000 supporters in the return of legendary middle blocker Thaisa Menezes as the second week of the Volleyball Nations League 2023 started for the South Americans in the country’s capital Brasilia.
With the 36-year-old middle blocker in the starting lineup, the Brazilians secured their fourth victory in the VNL 2023, posting a 3-0 (31-29, 25-16, 25-16) win over Korea at the Nilson Nelson Stadium.
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A two-time Olympic champion (Beijing 2008 and London 2012), Thaisa wore the Brazilian uniform for the first time since 2018 and was passionately cheered by the home fans. The veteran responded with a strong performance, scoring 11 points (nine kills, one ace, one block) in the Brazilian victory over the Asians.
“To return after such a long time, it really felt like a debut,” she said after the match. “I had goosebumps getting on the court and it took me a little while to calm down. It was very important to return with a victory and that the team could start this week at home with a good result. I’m still reconnecting with all my teammates and step by step, I’ll get there. I’m very well physically, ready to help as much as the team needs, and very grateful to be experiencing this again.”
Kisy had a major role coming off the bench for Brazil
One of Thaisa’s teammates at Gerdau Minas, opposite Kisy Nascimento stole the show in her return, coming off the bench to register 15 points (13 kills, two blocks). She tied the production of outside hitter Julia Bergmann, who had 14 kills and one ace.
“It was the first time we played Korea and they had a lot of new players,” Julia commented. “We had patience and ended up winning a tough first set and, after that, the next two were much better. We know what we want to this season and we’re showing it on the court. But this was only the beginning, we have three more matches here.”
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