Poland’s block party pleases home fans in Gdansk

Playing in front of their home fans for the first time at the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship, Poland put on a strong display to dominate Thailand and secure their second victory in the tournament.

With Pool B matches moving to Gdansk on Tuesday, the Poles took advantage of the support of their home crowd to top their Asian opponents in straight sets (25-17, 25-17, 25-17) and remain undefeated in the event.

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

The Poles had a superb performance at the net, vastly dominating the Thais in kills (46 to 27) and blocks (16 to one). Their production in these two areas of the game was more than enough to offset the higher number of errors (19 to nine) made by the Europeans – each side registered four aces.

Nearly perfect in both skills, opposite Magdalena Stysiak left the court with 26 points to her name. The 21-year-old rising star had more kills (18) and blocks (eight) than any other player on the court, and hit at an impressive 59.26% efficiency rate.

“This was a very important match for us,” Stysiak commented. “Thailand had defeated Türkiye in their opening match and we knew they could be difficult opponents. Winning this match 3-0 should help us a lot in our pool and that’s really exciting. Although we had quite a few Polish fans supporting us in our first match in Arnhem, it’s amazing to play the World Championship in our country. Today was really exciting and we can’t wait for more. We want to keep our level up in the next match against Korea and play our best game.”

Middle blocker Agnieszka Korneluk also had a productive night, with 13 points (nine kills, three blocks, one ace), while outside hitter Olivia Rozanski scored nine (five kills, two blocks, two aces).

Opposite Pimpichaya Kokram was the only player from Thailand to reach double digits in scoring. The 24-year-old player left the court with 11 points after she registered eight kills, one block and two aces.

The fans at the Ergo Arena on Wednesday saw three matches decided in just three sets as Türkiye started the day defeating Korea 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-13) while the Dominican Republic topped Croatia also in straight sets (25-20, 25-15, 25-21) in the second duel.

After their first two matches, Poland share the top spot in the pool with the Dominican Republic, who also their two encounters in straight sets. With one win and one loss, Türkiye (four points) and Thailand (two) are third and fourth. Croatia and Korea are yet to win or score points. The four top teams in each pool will advance to the second phase of the World Championship.

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

Poland will play their next match on Wednesday, at 20.30 local time (18.30 GMT), against Korea. Thailand will have a quicker turnaround as they will be back on the court at 14.00 local time (12.00 GMT) to face Croatia in the first match of the day.

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FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship Netherlands Poland 2022
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