The Hague, The Netherlands, July 15, 2014 - They were not scheduled for the Transavia Grand Slam in The Hague, but Michiel van Dorsten and Daan Spijkers heard yesterday evening that they could play today. Their first match at the Grand Slam in The Hague took place on centre court and the Dutch pair did not disappoint.
Van Dorsten and Spijkers won their first match 2-1 (23-25, 24-22 and 15-12). "I’m happy to be here playing in our city. We live and train in Scheveningen," said van Dorsten after his team’s first win Tuesday. "I arrived this morning on my bicycle; centre court is just five minutes from my house. It’s a wonderful feeling to play here, especially because we train here every day. This tournament is like a home match for us. Now I’m going back home to take a shower, fresh up and prepare for the match against the Brazilians Ricardo and Alvaro Filho."
The game against the Brazilian top players will be a tough one. "It will be hard, but we will fight for it," added van Dorsten. "The tournament is the Wimbledon of beach volleyball. So it is important and we will try to beat the Brazilians." Last week, the Dutch team lost in the second round in Gstaad against the number one seed, also a Brazilian pair.
Van Dorsten was not satisfied with his team's performance against Kovatsch and Kissling from Switzerland. "In our first match, our performance wasn’t what it was supposed to be, but I expect that we’ll grow into the tournament," he added. “Beginning with the match against the Brazilians. There’s a lot at stake in this match. We lost the last three tournaments against a team which won a medal. So if we win, it is maybe our chance to win a medal. And who wouldn’t want to win in one's own backyard?"