Novara, the powerhouse of Serie A, is the only opponent that Zhu Ting has not defeated in Serie A. In the last six meetings, Zhu's side have lost to Novara, four of which have come in the final. This made Zhu Ting feel extremely regretful and frustrated, she once said: "I really want to win against Novara, this is my biggest wish in Serie A." ”
This summer, Zhu Ting moved from Wakifer Bank to Scandicci, an up-and-coming team with ambitions to make their mark in Serie A. Zhu Ting also hopes to open a new chapter here and fulfill her wishes. And on December 10, 2023, she finally ushered in her chance, she and her new teammates faced Novara at home, which was a key battle in Serie A and a battle of Zhu Ting's demons. Will she be able to overcome her demons and win for herself and her team this time?
In this match, Zhu Ting showed her all-round strength, she played an important role in both the offensive and defensive ends, and she was the soul and leader of the Scandic team. She scored 19 points in the game, including 16 on offense, two on blocking and one on serve, and she was the scoring leader for Scandic and the second-highest in the tournament, behind Novara's Egnu, who scored 22 points.
Zhu Ting's offensive efficiency is also very high, she smashed the ball 34 times in the whole game, only 1 turnover, 1 blocked, and the success rate reached 47%, which is the highest on the team and the second highest in the game, behind Novara's Boskovic, who has a 50% success rate. Zhu Ting's offense is not only efficient, but also changeable, she can not only use her strong strength and jumping, hit a blockbuster blow, but also can flexibly change the angle and speed according to the opponent's defense, and play a clever move, her offense makes the opponent's blocking and defense feel powerless and helpless.
Zhu Ting also showed her excellence on the defensive end, she received a team-high 29 passes without any mistakes, and the first pass completion rate was as high as 65%, she provided stable support for the Scandic team's attack, she also defended aggressively in the back row, she saved 7 goals in the game, the second most for the Scandicci team, and only after the libero Marconi, who saved 8 goals.
Zhu Ting's defense also shows her wisdom and skills, she can adjust her position and posture in time according to the opponent's attack, she can use her hands and body to block the opponent's attack back, she can also use her own eyes and judgment to guide the opponent's attack to her teammates, her defense makes the opponent's attack feel difficult and pressure.
The Scandicci team's offense was their forte, scoring 57 points on 116 dunks and a 49 percent success rate, and their offense was 6 more than Novara's, a 4 percentage point higher success rate.
The Scandic team's offense not only has a main attacker like Zhu Ting, but also other scorers, such as the secondary attack Karakurt, she scored 14 points in the game, of which 11 points came from offense, 3 points from blocking, she is the second highest score of the Scandic team, her offensive success rate has also reached 46%, she creates a great threat to the opponent on the net, and she also has two wonderful back-row smashes, showing her all-round.
There is also an important link in the Scandicci team's attack, that is, the setter Walsh, she sent 48 effective setters throughout the game, providing accurate passes for the Scandic team's attack, she is also able to flexibly adjust her passing strategy according to the opponent's blocking and defense, adding variety and difficulty to the Scandicci team's attack, she also has two of her own offensive scores, showing her offensive power, she also has a beautiful one-pass score, showing her reaction speed, she is the commander and brain of the Scandicci team。
Scandic defensively also had an advantage, making 49 saves in the game, eight more than Novara, and their save success rate was 62 per cent, three percentage points higher than Novara. The Scandic team's defense not only has a pass and a back-row defensive expert like Zhu Ting, but also other defensive masters, such as the libero Marconi, who saved 8 goals in the whole game, the most for the Scandicci team, her save success rate of 67%, she provided a solid guarantee for the Scandicci team's defense in the back row, and she also had a wonderful one-pass score, showing her skills and awareness.
Zhu Ting's Scandic team successfully defeated the demon Novara and achieved his first victory against the team in Serie A. Zhu Ting showed a strong all-round strength in the game, with good offense and defense, and became the team's scoring champion with an outstanding performance of 19 points. The whole team worked together and the success rate remained high, winning 3-1 and moving up to third in the league. This victory is not only a remedy for past regrets, but also a boost of confidence in the title race for the new season. The outstanding performance of the Scandic team gave the fans a wonderful game, and also kicked off a successful prelude to Zhu Ting's journey in the new team.