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According to the owner of the inn, Treviso is the birthplace of tiramisu, so we went to a cafe recommended by the owner to have some tiramisu for breakfast, but they didn't have any tiramisu...
Instead, I ordered something like a cream puff that the waiter recommended.
This was delicious in its own way, of course, but I really wanted to try the tiramisu from Treviso, the birthplace of tiramisu, so I'll definitely try it again next time I come!!
Then we head to our next destination, Verona.
The train from Treviso to Verona takes approximately 2 hours.
Verona is the city where Romeo and Juliet was set and is one of Italy's most popular tourist destinations.
However, since I had already seen the tourist area, I completely ignored it and headed straight from the station to the arena (lol).
This will be my third Para AGSM AIM this season.
This season alone, more people have come than Allianz Cloud in Milan and Kioene Arena in Padua (I lined up right after them at Kioene Arena (lol)).
On this day, free cake was distributed by the team sponsor (?).
Big lol.
It's so generous of them to give this to all their customers!!
As you enter the entrance, you will be greeted by Sabozhukov (220cm).
This is what the inside of the arena looks like.
The photo above is the view from the press box.
Generally, most venues have the press seats located at the very front end of the court, but Verona is the only one that is quite far away...
From here on, the excitement of the game is reduced, but what is most frustrating for me as a writer is that it is difficult to see the players' expressions.
The players entered the court about an hour before the start of the match.
But it's still far away...
But at least we should be grateful that we are allowed to watch from the venue as members of the media!!
But I was frustrated so I tried to get a little closer (laughs).
Our Milano's Yuki Ishikawa was calmly going through his warm-up again today.
The person he passes to is the reliable Patry.
A reliable stone patrol pair. pic.twitter.com/eVz96dlfsY
— TOSHIKI (@toshikit71) January 22, 2023
I haven't had the chance until now, but if the timing is right, I'd like to talk to Patry about it.
Their opponent, Verona, is an ultra-attacking team with two of the world's tallest side attackers, OP Saposhkov (220cm) and OH Keita (206cm), and in the first half of the game held at Milan's home ground, Milan was defeated 0-3 by their tall spikes and blocks.
Milan will be playing away that day, and the Verona fans will be very excited so it will be quite an away game, but I hope they can somehow avenge their loss from the first half of the season.
Moreover, on that day, the Verona vs. Milan match was scheduled to start at 15:30, and the Padua vs. Taranto match was scheduled to start at 18:00 in Padua, where Takahashi Ai was playing.
The shortest travel time between these two locations is about an hour and a half, so if I could finish my interview with Ishikawa within two hours and travel from there, I'd still be able to make it in time for the third set of the match in Padua... (laughs).
Because of this crazy plan, I was hoping that Milan would win in straight sets, even though it would be difficult.
Meanwhile the venue had filled up with spectators, both teams had finished warming up, and it was time to line up.
I don't know why, but both teams were lined up with children wearing yellow T-shirts, and it was heartwarming to see Piano and Ebadipoour gently guiding the children (laughs).
And when the starting lineup was announced, as always, Verona's starting lineup was very flashy with flashing lights!!
This will definitely get your customers excited.
After Verona's starting lineup was announced, paper tape flew all over the place from the cheering section, landing on the VIP seats at the end of the court, and it was kind of surreal to see the VIPs removing the tape themselves (laughs).
I also felt a little sad when I noticed that the paper tape, including those from past games, was still hanging from the ceiling (laughs).
Clean up after yourself every time lol
By the way, Milan's starting lineup included captain Matteo (Piano), who had led the team to consecutive wins since the match against Civitanova at the end of the year, but he was out due to injury, and it was Vitelli who started for the first time in a while.
In the early stages of the first set, Milan lost consecutive points on OH Keita's serve, falling behind 3-7, and was unable to close the gap for a while after that.
The Verona fans were really passionate and the way they got excited when we got a service ace, a block or a difficult attack was amazing!!
OH Mozic also barked a lot, and OH Keita did some weird, undulating dance (lol), and it was clear from the beginning of the game that the players and fans were excited together.
Perhaps it felt that way even more because I was sitting further in the audience than usual.
On the other hand, the cheers of "Ah!" when a wasteful play was made were also quite loud (laughs).
In the final stages, OH Ishikawa scored from a wasteful play by OH Mozic, and then OP Saposchkov made a mistake, tying the score at 23-23 for Milan, but in the end, L Pesaresi was broken by S Spirito's serve and OH Keita scored a direct spike to make it 23-25 for Verona.
Once Verona had taken the first set, the chances of Milan winning and moving on to Padua were almost zero, so I watched the match hoping, "I don't want to have to go to Padua anymore, so please Milan win!!!"
Milan was in control in the early part of the second set.
There were also aces from MB Rosell and OH Melgarejo, and when OH Ishikawa turned to the nearby right fielder and tossed the ball to the left, I thought to myself, "There it was! He's definitely going to toss it the other way!!" and it was fun to watch (laughs).
Also, Ishikawa's own spikes were often on target.
After that, Verona broke the serve with OP Saposhkov's serve and MB Cortegia's block, but Milan managed to hold on to the lead with aces from OP Patri.
However, with Milan leading by two points at 18-16, our Ishikawa allowed the opposing team's MB Grozdanov to make two consecutive blocks, allowing Milan to tie the score at 18-18 (anxious).
Before Ishikawa's next serve, which was expected to result in a break, Verona used a timeout and replaced OP Saposchkov with OH Magarini, exempting OH Keita from his weak point of receiving serves, and successfully cut off Ishikawa's serve with one serve.
Did coach Stojchev really dislike Ishikawa's serve that much? (lol)
Then, in the final minutes, Verona's MB Cortesia made a great quick block and Verona finally managed to turn the game around to 21-22.
Not to be outdone, Milan's Vitelli also earned points with attacks and blocks, but the match went into deuce.
Ishikawa's sharp pipe attack was successful, but in the end OH Mozic, who turned the cheers of the crowd into strength, scored a spike to give Verona a 25-27 win in the set.
In this set, Ishikawa's consecutive blocks were really painful.
I don't think we can call him "Mr. Ishikawa" in this match... (laughs).
From the start of the third set, OH Melgarejo was replaced by OH Ebadipour, who has become something of a handyman for Milan.
In the early stages, Ishi Eva and Vitelli scored some spikes, but they were unable to get a break due to a serve error.
On the other hand, Verona gradually started to score breaks from the middle of the game thanks to S. Spirito's serves and OH Keita's attacks, and before they knew it, they were down by five points at 12-17...
Isn't this a sure sign that the strike will be lost?
At this point, I remember that my flight into Italy yesterday was delayed by only 30 minutes (so far, every flight I've taken for a Milan game has been delayed).
No no, I still don't know, I don't know!!!
Then, with Ishikawa's serve, they narrowed the gap to two points at 15-17, but they couldn't keep it up, and instead Verona got a break and the gap was restored.
In the final stages, OH Evadip got some revenge with a service ace, but in the end, OP Saposhkov's high, powerful spike gave Verona the set, 21-25, and the game was set.
Ah, I lost in straight sets again this time...
Just like the match against Cisterna which I covered on-site at the end of the year, they were unable to get revenge on the team they lost to in the first half of the game.
Moreover, this time they lost in straight sets, just like in the first half.
I guess there's such a thing as compatibility after all.
Of course, the Verona supporters were delighted, and the family sitting near me also went home in a good mood, and the little kid was so cute, so I guess it was all good (laughs).
The report of this match is also available here:
After the match, I also had the opportunity to talk to Ishikawa.
I was able to relax a lot more when interviewing Takahashi and Miyaura, but I was still quite nervous when interviewing Ishikawa...
Furthermore, although Milan lost the match, it was the game in which Ishikawa scored his 2,000th goal in the Italian League, and they completely forgot to mention that.
Deep reflection.
In particular, Ishikawa answers questions concisely and simply, so unless we prepare questions properly, we are unable to extract as much information as we would like (on the other hand, Takahashi is always happy to talk a lot on his own, which is always a great help (laughs)).
However, when I mentioned that he had modified his spikes from the third set onwards and was hitting more soft shots, he smiled as if to say he was glad to hear me, so I realised that if you notice his ideas and thoughts during the match and mention them, he will be pleased.
The next time I will be able to interview Ishikawa will be at the Coppa Italia at the end of February, and I hope to do my best to make the conversation even more meaningful then!!
I checked the clock and it was still 5:20pm.
You can even watch the Padova match here... (laughs)
The Milan match ended early, so we're heading to Padua. pic.twitter.com/dNZL59q1LN
— TOSHIKI (@toshikit71) January 22, 2023
I grabbed the cake and ran to the station.
Photo: Author
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