Short characterization RUSSIA

PLAYERS		STARTING SIX - SUBSTITUTES	RANKING 2000 - 2008
1	SIVOZHELEZ, Evgeny		OG 2000	2
2	POLTAVSKIY, Semen
4	KHTEY, Taras		WCH 2002	2
6	GRANKIN, Sergey
8	BIRYUKOV, Denis		WC 2003	-
10	BEREZHKO, Yury
11	MAKAROV, Sergey		OG 2004	3
13	MUSERSKIY, Dmitriy
14	ASTASHENKOV, Anton		WCH 2006	7
15	WOLKOV, Alexander
16	VERBOV, Alexey (L)		WC 2007	2
17	MIKHAYLOV, Maxim
18	SHCHERBININ, Dmitry		OG 2008	3
19	KOMAROV, Valery (L)

  General remarks about the team and about the playing-style

· Average Length 200.

· High attacks.

· Tall quick attackers.

· Effective Playing structures.

· Best attacking team of the tournament.

· Nr 17 MIKHAYLOV Best spiker of the tournament.

· As a team disappointing block performance (ranked 8th).

· 2 players (13 and 17) with top 4 servers of tournament.

Serve

• Efficient serving  (over 10% aces, 1:3 aces : faults).
• Mix of actual techniques from different positions (powerful floats, jump spin power serve, controlled float serve).
• Controlled jump serve precision and tactical efficiency adapted to opponent.
• Main Goal : Scoring points and disrupt Complex I play of opponent.
• Tactical float aimed on disturbing frontrow outsite hitter.

Serve reception

· Reception is secure.

· Three players in reception formation for Jumpservice.

· Two players in reception formation for float (Nr 10 Berezhko and libero Verbov).

· Using overhead reception against deep floats.

· Deep angles in knee and hip to pass the ball as near to the floor as possible

· In case of jump serve: often impulse control or punch technique is used. The position is low and the arms move down, sometimes to the floor, when the ball is played.

· High passing to setter on jump serve.

· Opposite player (no 17 MIKHAYLOV) is supporting reception on jumps when possible (rotation pos.1, 5 ,4).

Set/Attack - Complex I and Complex II

· Jumping setting techniques: with takeoff both feet. Running sets without jumping but hop during set. Easy adapting to reception.

· Shoulders not totally square angle to the net. Using trunk rotation to give set more speed.

· Easy and quick steps from starting position to target.

· Quick and precise sets from nearly all the positions in the court.

· Effective variation of setting: tempo and positions.

· Libero is taking over second ball, giving “no risk” sets.

· Quick sets to position 4 and 2, specially when playing longline.

· Playing very quick in Complex II. 

Block and Defense

• Efficiency and organization of blocking.
• Not as efficient as we are used from russia teams (Nr 8  team ranking).
• No individual blocker in top 12 ranking.
• Tactical adaptation of blocking based on statistics and tactical analysis of opponent.

· Depending on the actual situation block coverage (without covering the tip, netplayer not included into the block, combination of backcourt players on position 1 and 5).

· Middle blockers using arm movement (hands outside shoulder) to close the outside block.

• Diggers making a small court.