Tokyo, Japan, May 31, 2016 - Poland captain Michal Kubiak commented that the team reached peak performance in their third match after going through two difficult five-set matches in the first two days, while Japan coach Masashi Nambu said that they have got to get back to the drawing board for the next match.
Poland coach Stephane Antiga: “I am very happy with this game and result. We had an opportunity to spend a short time on the court tonight in just three sets. (Masahiro) Yanagida and (Yuki) Ishikawa were good for Japan. Our serve was good I don't think we played our best volleyball, but we concentrated and won.”
Poland captain Michal Kubiak: “This was probably our best game of the tournament so far. We are happy to win against Japan, which are a very dangerous team.”
Poland player Mateusz Mika: “We are happy we took another great step towards Rio. Winning against Japan was difficult as they are a good team.
Japan coach Masashi Nambu: “We had some good points but had difficulty with our rotation. Their rank is higher, so we knew it would not be easy. We had to be good in all aspects to compete with them. Their quick attacks and serve were the reasons for the defeat. We were able to show our strengths and play with them on equal footing for a while. We will concentrate on the upcoming matches. We tried for quick attacks but their blocks stopped us. We have to review our reception before the next match.”
Japan captain Kunihiro Shimizu: “We responded well in the first set but could not get side-outs because of their strong serves. We did not have enough patience. We kept up with them in the third set and we had more concentration to get those side-outs. Poland have high blocks like China, so I had to hit the ball off the block."
Japan player Akihiro Yamauchi: “I tried to play boldly and but could not be as audacious enough in some aspects. I wanted to show my strengths but my blocking and spiking didn't go well.”
Japan player Masahiro Sekita: “We definitely wanted to win. I wanted to change the momentum but I couldn’t, so I feel very frustrated.”
Japan player Yuki Ishikawa: “I also feel frustrated by the loss. We still have more matches. We will start preparing for those now.”