Gabi leads Brazil to first win

Tokyo Olympics and Volleyball Nations League silver medallists Brazil dropped a set, but still had a successful start to their campaign in the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship on Saturday as the South Americans topped the Czech Republic in their first match at the GelreDome, in Arnhem, the Netherlands.

The Brazilians ended the second day of competition at the 19th edition of the tournament with a 3-1 (25-20, 25-15, 22-25, 25-18) victory over the Czechs to get a head start in Pool D.

· Watch all FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship 2022 matches live on Volleyball TV.

Brazil, who have three silver and one bronze medal at the World Championship, but are still looking for their first title, were better than their European opponents in kills (55 to 45), blocks (13 to ten) and aces (four to one) and also benefited from more errors (25 to 23) to build their win.

Star outside hitter and team captain Gabriela ‘Gabi’ Guimaraes led from the front in her team’s debut with a match-high 24 points. The 28-year-old hitter secured 23 of her points in kills, hitting at a 38.30% efficiency rate, and also fired an ace.

Opposite Kisy Nascimento, with 16 points (13 kills, three blocks), outside hitter Pri Daroit, with 11 (eight kills, one block, two aces), and middle blocker Carol Gattaz, who returned to the team after sitting out of the VNL and added ten (six kills, four blocks), all reached double digits in scoring.

“It was just our first match in the tournament and it’s normal that we leave the court with the feeling that we have some things to improve in our game,” Gattaz commented. “We knew that it would be hard against the Czech Republic and that we’d have to give our best. But it’s going to be the same in every single match here. The goal is that we improve and get better in every match. Limiting the number of our mistakes is something we need to do and I’m sure our game will grow as the tournament advances. We’re prepared and I believe in our team very much.”

On the Czech side, opposite Gabriela Orvosova, who had 18 points (15 kills, three blocks), and outside hitter Michaela Mlejnkova, who tallied 13 (12 kills, one block), were the main scorers.

FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship Netherlands-Poland 2022: Match Schedule and Results

The other four teams in the pool will all debut on Sunday, with the match between China and Argentina set to start at 14.00 local time (12.00 GMT) and the encounter reuniting Japan and Colombia scheduled for 15 minutes later.

Brazilians and Czechs will both be back on the court on Wednesday, with the South Americans facing continental rivals Argentina at 18.30 local time (16.30 GMT) and the Europeans playing against Japan at 14.15 local time (12.15 GMT).

Quick links:
FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship Netherlands Poland 2022
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