Brazilian women's pair Ana Paula Connelly/Larissa Franca survived a scare against Georgian Andrezza Martins/ Cristine Santanna Saturday as the latter mounted tough onslaught on the first day of the Beijing beach volleyball tournament.
Ana/Larissa dropped the opening tie 23-25 to 22nd-seeded Andrezza/Cristine who gained an upper hand with strong attacks.
The Brazilians, who pumped themselves up for the second set, came back strong to take the game 21-17.
In the tie-breaker, Ana/Larissa boosted their defense and spiked down sizzling shots to crush their rivals 15-5 and secure a 2-1 match win.
Ana replaced Juliana Felisberta for the Beijing Games as Juliana is suffering from sharp pains on her right knee and is not able to play.
"We know it will be a hard battle because the Georgian pair are strong," Ana said after the match.
An experienced volleyball player, Ana has played indoor volleyball for Brazil's national team for many years, and was one of the players who won the bronze medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Juliana, 25, suffered a serious injury on her right knee's cruciate ligament on June 18 during a Grand Slam match in Paris, and has been wearing knee braces since then.
(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2008)
