The semi-finals of the 2022 Men's World Volleyball Championship took place on the 10th in Katowice, Poland. Poland and Brazil, the same team as in the final four years ago, played a fierce full-set battle, but Poland, taking advantage of their home field advantage, won 3-2 (23-25, 25-18, 25-20, 21-25, 15-12), advancing to the final for the third consecutive year and putting them in a position to win their third consecutive title.
Meanwhile, Brazil's defeat meant their streak of reaching consecutive World Championship finals came to an end at six.
The final match between Poland and Italy will be held in Katowice, Poland on the 11th at 9pm local time.
Comments from the players below:
Bartosz Kurek (Poland, OP)
--Today's match was another tough full-set match, just like the quarterfinal against the United States, and it looked like you were struggling, especially in the middle of the fifth set. What did you think?
Of course. Everyone struggles in the fifth set. That's normal. After two and a half hours of playing, difficult moments are bound to happen for both individuals and the team. So you have to stay calm, believe in yourself, and be mindful of your own mental state. And to build that mentality, we play hard in practice, like we did in this match. I'm really proud of our team.
--A third consecutive championship is finally in sight...
No, not yet. Let's talk about tomorrow. We will face the winner of the match between Italy and Slovenia (Italy wins after that). It will definitely be a tough match. Hopefully we can talk about the third consecutive championship tomorrow.
Aleksander Silivka (Poland, OH)
What was the most difficult part of today's match?
The fourth set was difficult. We had a chance to win 3-1, but Brazil played very well. Rodriguinho replaced Real, and Brazil's reception improved, they were able to attack at a fast tempo, and they were able to attack from the side and the pipes quickly, so it was difficult to decide the match in the fourth set.
-What was the turning point of the match?
I think the most important moment was at 11-10 in the fifth set, when Bartek Kurek pulled his hand out to block a Real attack. That decided the match.
-What do you think is the key to winning tomorrow's final?
I think the key is whether we can play our best volleyball. As you can see from the results so far, if we can play the best volleyball we have, we can beat any team. That will be the key. We are still waiting for tomorrow's opponent, but the important thing is to play our own volleyball.
-Who would you like to play against if you could?
Either way, enjoy the next game and think about tomorrow.
Photo: FIVB
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