Malkia Strikers coach Paul Bitok has called for commitment, sacrifice, hunger and desire from his charges as they prepare to square it out with Osasco Volleyball Club on Friday, in one of the many international friendly matches penciled during their Brazilian tour.
After two weeks of high-performance training in Brazil, the no-nonsense tactician has called upon his players to put into practice what they have been doing in training when they play the Sao Paulo-based Brazilian SuperLiga side.
Managed by Luizomar de Moura, Osasco was founded in 1996 and is captained by former international Camila Brait.
In the assessment of his charges, the former Rwanda coach Bitok said though there’s a drastic improvement from the athletes, they still have a long way to go to hit peak levels. He added that the players are eager for sterner tests ahead of the World Championships.
“To be competitive calls for commitment and sacrifice. We have to continue working hard because we have no choice in our bid to take our game to the next level. Qualifying for the second round of the World Championships is a realistic target if the players remain committed to the course. We want to see a big difference when we play Osasco this Friday,” said Bitok.
“We have organised at least one friendly match a week but the intention is to play about 15 test series. There’s progress in regard to player fitness even though they are yet to hit their peak. I expect them to be at their optimum levels once we are done with some scheduled friendly matches in Serbia. For consistency, they need at least 20 matches to find their rhythm.”
After tirelessly working on reception and blocks, Malkia will turn their attention to attack in a bid to combine the three important facets of the play.
“We have to blend attack with reception and blocks and that is our next step. We have covered a lot on reception and we really thank Osasco for allowing us use their facilities.”
Malkia, who are nine-time African champions are in Pool ‘A’ of the 24-team tournament alongside reigning continental giants Cameroon, European champions Italy, hosts Netherlands, Belgium and Puerto Rico. Kenya will be eyeing a second win at the championship after registering a historic victory by stunning Kazakhstan in straight sets during the 2018 edition held in Japan.
