Switzerland – Dominican Republic
As she attended a press conference shortly before the training camp in Zurich, head coach Svetlana Ilic did name the players retained for the upcoming tournament in Belgium as well for the Montreux Volley Masters. “In Kortrijk our goal is to finish second in the group as Belgium stands out as the clear favorite” Ilic says. “Although we will know the final rosters only on site, Portugal will be the team to beat there to finish second in the group”.
To get ready for their first World Championship in 12 years, the Swiss players had the opportunity to test out their likes by playing the world’s number 10 of the Dominican Republic. “At the end of the domestic season we had a short break and then we had this unique opportunity to play such a strong team like the Dominican Republic. These games were extremely useful to continue with our preparations and work on our tactics” so Ilic. The Caribbean players will stay for another week there in Zurich before they move on to join the Montreux Volley Masters. Though Switzerland lost twice in straight sets, these matches were nevertheless useful for the home side.
Switzerland will also participate in the Montreux Volley Masters for the first time since 1996 where the players mentored by Ilic will play Russia, Brazil and China in the prelims. “This will be a unique experience for my young girls” Ilic says. “Switzerland is not able to stand the quality of such teams but every single point we score will count as much as three in our preparations for the home European Championship we will co-host with Germany” she concludes.
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