Iran Makes History in FIVB World League, Enters Semis
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Iranian national volleyball team qualified for the semi-final of the 2014 FIVB World League for the first time in its history.
World No.12 ranked Iran defeated world No.1 Brazil 3-1 (25-22, 25-19, 23-25, 28’26) at the Nelson Mandela Hall in Florence, Italy on Friday.
The Iranian outfit, who is participating in the FIVB World League for the second time, topped Pool I with four points, followed by Brazil and Russia with three and two points respectively. Russia, as the second team in the FIVB world rankings, was eliminated.
“I’m angry because in the third set, the team didn’t play as well as it should have – we were unfocused. But this is still a great result, and tomorrow we will try to beat whoever we find in front of us,” Iran coach Slobodan Kovac told FIVB.org.
Amir Ghafour was the match top scorer with 23 points. Lucarelli was top Brazil scorer with 17 points.
The semifinals take place on Saturday. Iran will face US, while Brazil take on host Italy.
