The first round of the 2024-2025 Russia Premier League season has come to a successful conclusion, with many teams showing fierce competition. Particularly eye-catching is the clash between the Belgorod male lion men's volleyball team joined by Chinese men's volleyball players and Zenit Kazan, which turned into a five-game battle with ups and downs. In the end, the Male Lion lost 2-3 (19-25, 25-22, 25-22, 19-25 and 8-15) to the defending champions in this difficult matchup. The match not only showcased the superb skills and subtle tactics of both teams, but also added to the spectacle and tense atmosphere of the match.
Belgorod's Zhang Jingyin's form is gradually improving, but it is still difficult to compete with the strong defending champion Kazan team, even if the Kazan team lacks the main player to pick up Haqidadi, it still set off a fierce battle at home. In this game, Zhang Jingyin did not get the chance to start in the first game, but the team still tried its best against the strong defending champion Kazan team. The Kazan men's volleyball team is still led by United States top setter Andreas Christensen, who has just won the Russia Cup, beating the Dynamo Moscow men's volleyball team 3-0. The return of libero Korotkov, who played for Belgorod last season, to Kazan has strengthened the stability of the team.
In the first game, Kazan outperformed Belgorod in serving, smashing and error control, so they won the opening game. In the second game, the Belgorod team made a tactical change, and Zhang Jingyin was able to start the match, and with his excellent serve, he helped the team to victory, which also showed that his form has gradually adjusted to the best situation.
In the third game, the Belgorod team continued to maintain the advantage, showing excellent offensive ability and blocking ability, and won 25-22 again. However, in the face of the heavy pressure of falling behind in the game, the Kazan men's volleyball team made personnel changes in the fourth game, and the veteran Mikhailov and Belgium's Drew started to enhance the team's first pass and offensive intensity, and the Belgorod team made many mistakes in this game, failed to maintain the consistency of the opening game, and finally lost points, and the big score came to 2-2.
In the deciding game, Kazan's serve was like a storm, which brought a huge impact to the Belgorod team. Every serve is as fast as a cannonball, and the speed of the ball and the tricky angle make the Belgorod team's service players overwhelmed and exhausted. Although the Belgorod team actively tried to adjust the lineup, frequently changed players, and tried to stabilize the situation of receiving the serve through personnel changes, however, this series of efforts failed to change the trend of the game.
The Kazan team has a significant advantage in the two key links of serving and blocking. Their serve is extremely powerful and accurate, often making Belgorod's pass difficult to parry; In terms of blocking the net, the players cooperated tacitly, grasped the timing just right, and successfully blocked the offensive line of the Belgorod team many times. With these excellent performances, Kazan won 3-2 against Belgorod.
Although the Belgorod team unfortunately failed to win in the first round, Zhang Jingyin's performance from the second game undoubtedly proved that he has a high level of competitive ability. Not only did he score a team-high 14 points (8 successful smashes out of 17, 2 blocks and 4 direct serves), but he also made a significant contribution in the return process. He alone took on a team-high 26 passes, and despite three turnovers, he still had a 54% completion rate, providing a strong guarantee for the team's attack.
After this battle, Zhang Jingyin's state showed an obvious upward trend. It is foreseeable that when the Belgorod team has a full complement of personnel, they will be able to show a stronger competitiveness. As the second round of the competition approaches, all teams are in full swing and actively preparing. They are either stepping up tactical drills or improving the level of chemistry between their players, all trying to find their own rhythm and play at their best in the new season.
The performance of each team in the first round of matches has already made people shine, which also makes everyone look forward to more exciting and fierce matchups in the future. It is believed that in this season's Russia Volleyball Super League, the teams will provide more exciting and exciting games for the fans, adding more brilliant and colorful light to the entire league.
