Kazan, Russia, 13 June, 2015 – Iranian coach Kovac Slobodan said his side put pressure on the Russians, forcing them into mistakes, after their 3-1 win (20-25, 25-16, 25-19, 25-23) in the FIVB World League on Saturday.
"We changed the game after the second set and started to win," said Slobodan. "We tried to do maximum and served well. The main point is that Russia was forced to make mistakes."
Iranian captain Mir Saeid Marouflakrani added: "It was a difficult match for both teams. Russia started really well. It is important we came back to the game in the second set and Russia made a lot of mistakes. I hope tomorrow the result will be the same."
Russian captain Andrey Ashchev said: "We were ready to fight tonight, but the team could not find the rhythm of the game and catch up with Iran. We will try to win tomorrow."