Iran achieved a significant victory against the Netherlands in a thrilling five-set match (3-2: 25-19, 22-25, 21-25, 25-19, 15-9) held in Belgrade, opening Sunday`s matches in the men’s Volleyball Nations League. Key performances from opposite Amin Esmaeilnezhad and the 20-year-old outside hitter Poriya Hossein Khanzadeh Firouzjah were instrumental as Iran successfully recovered after initially falling behind by a set.
This win improves Iran`s record to 4 wins and 4 losses, accumulating 12 points. They now stand in eighth place in the VNL standings, drawing closer to securing a spot in the Finals. In contrast, the Netherlands` situation remains precarious. With a record of just 1 win and 7 losses (4 points), they are positioned 17th, second from the bottom, and face a serious risk of relegation.
Looking at the match statistics, Iran`s success largely stemmed from their superior attacking performance and capitalizing on numerous unforced errors made by the Dutch side. However, the Netherlands held an advantage in blocking, outstuffing Iran 13-7.
Amin Esmaeilnezhad of Iran shared the title of top scorer for the match with his Dutch counterpart, Michiel Ahyi, both tallying 22 points. Amin was particularly efficient in attack with a 61% success rate, adding two kill blocks and an ace. Ahyi finished with a 53% success rate in spiking and also contributed two blocks. For Iran, the rising star Poriya added 21 points, including two aces, while Ehsan Daneshdoust chipped in with 14 points. The Netherlands had four other players reach double digits: outside hitters Bennie Tuinstra (13 points) and Tom Koops (11), and middle blockers Twan Wiltenburg (11 points, 6 blocks) and Cornelis Luuc van Der Ent (11 points, 3 blocks).
“I should first say congrats to the other team, because they played great! Of course, we played better than yesterday. We should continue to improve, because we have good talent, good young players, and we also have a good coach to head the team. Every game is important for us and we should just think about the next one,” Amin commented after the match.
Meanwhile, in Burgas, defending VNL champions France delivered a dominant performance, sweeping Turkiye in straight sets (25-20, 25-18, 25-19). France`s serve was a significant weapon, outserving Turkiye 8-2 in aces, and they also held a clear advantage in attack kills, 40-26. Opposite Theo Faure was the standout player for France, scoring a match-high 16 points, including one ace and 15 points from attacks with an impressive 63% success rate.
“The objective this summer is to enjoy, to play together and to play well. The beginning of the summer always means a lot of work, but it’s growing, it’s coming every day,” Faure stated following their victory.
Other matches on the day included Cuba versus Argentina in Belgrade. The competition week concludes with a total of nine matches across Burgas, Belgrade, and Chicago, involving all VNL participating teams.
Jasper Thornfield 
Oliver Wrenwick