India made history Sunday night by defeating USA 25-23, 25-21, 25-18 on the third day of FIVB Men’s Junior World Championship first-round Pool A action at Pune, India.India and USA both conclude the pool with 2-1 records, as well did Belarus. By virtue of the tiebreaking point ratio formula, India won Pool A with a 1.226 ratio.
India, playing in its fifth Men’s Junior World Championship, had never qualified for the top half of the classification bracket in the previous events, let alone winning its pool. USA earned the second spot by two-thousandths of a point over Belarus – 1.039 to 1.037.Singh Gurinder charged the Indian offense with 19 points and Jacob Manidurai Naveen Raji added 16 points in the victory.
Captain Mandeep Singh added nine points for India.Antonio Ciarelli led the USA with 12 points, while Tyler Jaynes contributed seven in the loss.India’s offense was potent during the night with a 44-32 advantage in kills, while it held a slim 11-10 lead in blocks. USA had a 4-2 advantage in aces.
USA Head Coach Shawn Patchell:
“India played really well. Coming into the tournament, I believe our strongest area was blocking. Tonight, India took advantage of our block by hitting through it and around it.”
USA Captain Murphy Troy:
“We needed to have played better defense tonight against India to win.”
India Head Coach M.H. Kumara:
“I am delighted with the win. We made history tonight by winning the pool and beating a team from the Olympic champion country. This is a very big moment for Indian volleyball.”
India Captain Mandeep Singh:
“I want to congratulate all our players, coaching staff and the National Federation for this accomplishment.”
