In the eagerly anticipated Volleyball Challenger Cup 2023, hosts Qatar are set to meet Chile, while Europe’s Türkiye and Ukraine will face off in Doha, Qatar, this Saturday. The winner of the tournament will secure a place in the coveted 2024 Volleyball Nations League.
Chile, having defeated Tunisia with a straight set of 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-23), advanced to the semi-finals. The victory was spearheaded by Vicente Parraguirre, who achieved a match high of 33 points for Chile, striking with a success rate of 60%. Tunisia’s top scorer was Oussama Ben Romdhane with 12 points.
Making its Challenger Cup debut, Ukraine also advanced to the semi-finals by overcoming China with a 3-1 (25-19, 25-22, 23-25, 25-19) victory. Ukraine’s star captain, Oleh Plotnytskyi, scored a match-high 24 points, supplemented by Vasyl Tupchii’s 18 points. China’s outside hitters, Yu Yuantai and Zhang Jingyin, respectively added 16 and 15 points.
In a clash against Thailand, Qatar secured a straight-set victory, triumphing 3-0 (26-24, 25-23, 26-24). The top scorer of the game was Thailand’s Napadet Bhinijdee with 23 points. For Qatar, the most efficient were Raimi Wadidie with16 points, Ribeiro Renan contributed with 12, and Youssef Oughlaf added another 11.
Lastly, Türkiye, the previous year’s finalists, clinched a spot in the semi-finals for the third consecutive time by winning 3-1 (25-20, 25-17, 24-26, 25-19) against the Dominican Republic. The match’s highest scorer was Henry Tapia Santana from the Dominican Republic, with 24 points. Close behind were two of Türkiye’s players: Adis Lagumdzija with 21 points and Efe Bayram contributing 20.
