REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — It’s certain that Latvia won’t be bolstered by one of their point machines, Dairis Bertans, against Canada in the final game of Group H. FIBA World Cup 2023 at Indonesia Arena, Gelora Bung Karno Complex, Senayan, Jakarta on Tuesday (29/8/2023) evening. The full-back of Latvian club VEF Riga suffered a hamstring injury during the game against France.
Dairis is expected to be out for six weeks. This meant he could only watch his younger brother Davis Bertans lead his country in the remaining fixtures of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023. Despite this, he was very effective, contributing 28 points in 21 minutes played in two games against Lebanon and France.
“He’s definitely not playing,” Latvian assistant coach Arturs Visockis-Rubenis said on Monday (28/8/2023) evening.
Without Dairis, Latvia would not lack confidence against Canada. According to Arturs, when he entered the pitch, the two teams were in a 0-0 position.
Arturs pointed out that Latvia have already proven they can compete against big-name teams. The most important thing, he continued, is not to be afraid before you fight on the pitch.
“France and Canada don’t matter. You just have to go on the pitch, execute the game plan that has been drawn up, fight every inch of the pitch and face the opponent closer, and miracles will appear. To get there, we beat Serbia and Turkey (in the qualifiers). Yesterday we beat France. So you never know (the result against Canada),” Arturs said. .
Arturs said the main idea for tonight’s game in Latvia is to reduce Canada’s agility. According to him, Canada have the status of the fastest team in the World Cup of basketball, especially when it comes to punishing their opponents with quick blocks. “We’ll try to temper that. I’m not saying we’ll stop them, but we’ll try to slow them down at least.”
In a bid to present another surprise, Arturs asked the Latvian fans to conform again. Indonesia Arena This evening. According to him, the presence of fans from Latvia and other parts of the world is a big boost to achieve the best results.
“Imagine the feeling when you’re 10 points behind and the atmosphere in the stadium is empty, sometimes you feel like you want to give up or you don’t have the emotions to get up and fight. That’s not didn’t happen. Because they’re here to keep pushing us, they’re amazing,” Arthurs said.
From Canada, coach Jordi Fernandez said his team was in good condition. All players can be sent to serve Latvia.
Fernandez hailed Latvia as a tough opponent with a good game plan. “They are very well trained, with players who also have very good ability. I know their players. They are all great and we will be ready for them,” he said.
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