On Saturday, March 8th (local time), the first match of the Italian Superlegga playoff quarterfinals between Perugia and Modena took place. Perugia, where Ishikawa Yuki plays, defeated Modena 3-1 (23-25, 32-30, 25-22, 25-28) to win their first home game.
We spoke with Ishikawa after the match.
T: Thank you for your hard work. First, please give us a look back at the regular season.
Ishikawa: That's right. Although we ended up with two losses, I think we were in a good position. I was in and out of games, but I think it was a fulfilling regular season.
T: So that was the first match of the playoff quarterfinals. How do you look back on it?
Ishikawa: I myself only played for a short time, and I wasn't able to play to my satisfaction, so I'd like to play well next time and achieve good results. I think today's match was quite difficult. The first set was completely Modena's, and in the second set, we were broken by the opponent's serve at 24-22 and it went to deuce, which was a bit dangerous, but I think it was great that we were able to take that advantage today. Modena also returned good passes (serve receives) to our serves and held on. Modena also played very well, and I think the playoffs are always going to be tough matches like this.
T: Are you in good condition?
Ishikawa: Yes.
T: So is it simply the case that the two players in the same position who were in the starting lineup today (Semeniuk and Plotnicki) are playing because they are in good form?
Ishikawa: Yes, Semeniuk has been improving since last week's match against Piacenza. Before that, we had been substituting quite a lot, but if he plays stably like today, I don't think it's difficult to break in, but this is our starting point now, so first of all, I want to get myself back in good condition and fight.
T: When you've played for Milan up until now, you've always gone into the playoffs as challengers, but this time you'll be going into the playoffs as champions. Has that changed your mindset?
Ishikawa: None of us have the mindset that we will take on the champions just because we were second in the regular season or because we won (won) last year. We are also challengers and are fighting to win this 24-25 season, so we need to win these quarterfinals three times to move on, so we want to fight for that.
T: Finally, please tell us your enthusiasm for the playoffs, the Champions League quarter-finals, and the final.
Ishikawa: It's going to be a tough period with consecutive matches. If we continue to win, it's going to be a tough period in March, April, and May, so I want to make sure I'm in good condition and try to win every match, every point, one by one.
When I first asked him about his current condition, he replied that there was no problem, but he coughed several times during the interview and afterwards said that he wanted to "get back in shape," so it seems that he is not in perfect condition after all. First of all, I hope that he will get in shape and then perform even better in the playoffs and Champions League.
Photo by author, legapallavolo
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