World swimming championships, Setterosa knockout in semifinals

Netherlands-Italy 9-8

Holland wins 9-8 a match played evenly by a great Setterosa team that paid for the first half gap. Italy will play for bronze against Australia, which lost 12-10 to European champion Spain. A world medal that has been missing since Kazan 2015, up for grabs on Friday, July 28 at 4:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. Italian time). Unfortunately, the Italian women’s run-up, ahead only on Giustini’s 1-0, and also down by three goals (5-2 and 6-3 midway through the second half) never produced the equalizer (5-6, 6-7, 7-8 and 8-9 with 1’57 to go) although the feeling is that it could come at any moment. Galardi’s performance at center, who scored a double, and markswoman Marletta, who signed a hat trick, were excellent. But the entire national team played with courage and, switched to pressing, reduced the initial bewilderment by protecting Banchelli well. Better use could have been made of numerical superiorities (4/12), but the Netherlands did not do that much better (5/13). The final will be Spain-Holland.

Coach Carlo Silipo’s comment: “In the first half we conceded two easy goals, and these are situations that should not be conceded: a counterattack on one of our superiorities and a vertical one of theirs with the striker alone in front of the goal. These two goals we carried them throughout the game; then when we found the countermeasures we played on par with Holland. I am satisfied with the path of my girls, who showed that they can play with everyone and for ambitious goals; I am satisfied with Dafne Bettini who took responsibility for a difficult and heavy shot. There is regret, of course. We had come within a step of the final and the Olympic pass. But the life of a sportsman Friday we will fight for a major medal at the world championships and we have to recover energy for the third-place final.

The comment of bomber Claudia Marletta, best scorer of the match: “We were bad, we didn’t give up; obviously Holland was hungrier than us. Now we will try to take the bronze, it’s not over yet. We will continue to work hard to grow further in level, starting from the match with the United States and the certainties we have built with these performances.”