Resistencia, Argentina, August 21, 2015 - Although they were only a few inches away from elimination, Iran resurged from ashes and achieved a spectacular return to rule out Italy 3-2 (17-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-20, 15-11) and move to semifinals.
Iranian captain Rasoul Aghchehli performed superbly with 25 points, leading a counterattack force that grew unstoppable from the third set onwards. In a successful change, he moved from opposite to outside hitter with the entrance of Mahmood Rasooli, who followed him with 16 conquests.
However, it wasn’t an easy road at all for Iran, as Italy outsmarted them during the first two sets. With clever serves and solid blocks, it looked like the Azzurrini were ready to seal the deal with a 4-point advantage in the final track of the third set, but Iran stomped to win that chapter first and eventually the game.
Italian captain Gianluca Galassi finished at the top of his squad with 15 points, just one more than teammate Paolo Zonca. Setter Riccardo Sbertoli contributed with 9 points, 5 of them through blocks.