With their second victory in as many matches in Brazil, Perugia are now clear at the top of the Pool B standings with five points, followed by Osaka, with four. The two teams depend only on their own efforts to advance to the semifinals on Thursday - the Italians need to win at least two sets against defending champions Sada Cruzeiro of Brazil, who are third with three points, while the Japanese will progress if they beat Libya's Swehly Sports Club, who are eliminated and haven't earned points yet, by any score.
Tunisian opposite Wassim Ben Tara was Perugia's most productive player in their dramatic victory, tallying 20 points, with 15 kills, four blocks and one ace. Polish world champion outside hitter Kamil Semeniuk followed with 17 (11 kills, five blocks, one ace), while Argentine Olympic medalist middle blocker Agustín Loser added another 13 (seven kills, six blocks). Team captain Simone Giannelli had significant production for a setter again, registering seven points, with three kills, three blocks and one ace.
"It was a tough, but also very fun battle," Loser reacted. "They are super consistent, play incredible defense, and that carries their game. We knew that our blocking and defense would need to work well today, and I think that, for our growth, it's really important for us to face teams that have a playing style we don't see in Italy. We want to finish first in the group, and this victory allows us to do it."
Osaka's Cuban star outside hitter Miguel Ángel López was the match's top scorer and had the highest-scoring performance of a player in the tournament so far, leaving the court with a whopping 29 points (26 kills, two aces, one block). Team captain and opposite Yuji Nishida added 14 (ten kills, two blocks, two aces), one more than fellow Japanese national team player and outside hitter Shoma Tomita.
