Nimir guides the Netherlands to first VNL victory

Dutch captain Nimir Abdel-Aziz produced his first 20-point performance in the Volleyball Nations League 2022 and his contribution proved crucial for the Netherlands as they secured their first victory in the tournament on Friday in Brasilia, Brazil.

After setbacks against Japan and the United States, the Europeans raised their level of play to sweep (26-24, 25-21, 25-21) reigning Asian champions Iran and celebrate their first triumph in this year’s edition of the tournament.

· Watch all VNL 2022 matches live on Volleyball TV.

For the 30-year-old Nimir, the match against the Iranians provided more than the joy of a first win. It also provided the confidence that the team is headed in the right direction in the VNL, after a rough start.

“We had a difficult start and didn’t play as we wanted in the first two matches,” the Dutch opposite reflected. “But those were our first matches of the season and it was normal that not everything was perfect. I’m glad that we were able to show a better level this time and the goal is to keep improving our performances step by step.”

Nimir, who had scored 18 points against the Japanese and didn’t get to be on the court against the Americans, was unstoppable in the encounter with the Iranians, converting 17 of his 28 offensive actions into points, hitting at an excellent 60.71% rate. He also fired two aces and produced a block point.

Nimir started the match well and scored an amazing ace sending the ball right into the sideline of the Iranian court at 2-1. He also came up big for his team towards the end of the first set, hitting a sharp crosscourt spike to score 25-24.

The Dutch team turned to their high-scoring hitter again in clutch time at the end of the second set and Nimir responded with a powerful hit to score 23-19. In the third set, Nimir gave his team a two-point lead at 19-17 with a block and tooled the block to confirm the Dutch victory at 25-21.

The top scorer of the VNL in 2021 with 264 points, the experienced opposite said he’d be more interested in helping his team win more matches and improve on their 14th-place finish last year than in earning the scoring award another time.

“I really don’t care about being the top scorer,” he remarked. “If we win, it doesn’t matter to me if I scored one point or 20. I don’t think about being the top scorer because this is a team sport.”

Outside hitter Thijs Ter Horst was the second best Dutch scorer in the match, registering 14 points, all in kills, while middle blocker Fabian Plak tallied eight kills and three blocks to also reach double digits at 11.

The only Iranian player to produce more than ten points was opposite Amin Esmaeilnezhad, who scored 15, all in kills.

Volleyball Nations League 2022: Full schedule and results

The Netherlands will end their participation in the first week of the VNL 2022 on Sunday, when they face Australia at 16.00 local time (19.00 GMT).

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