Head coach: We could have hoped for more with the optimal squad

The Azerbaijani women's national sabre fencing team could have hoped for more at the World Championship held in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, with the optimal squad.

Idman.biz reports that this was stated to "Report" by Chingiz Mustafayev, the head coach of the national fencing team.

He shared his thoughts on the team taking 13th place in the competition: "We competed in the women's team sabre fencing competition without Anna Bashta and Zarifa Huseynova. We finished our first match with a victory. We faced the US team, a participant of the Summer Olympic Games, to advance to the strongest "eight". Here, the main burden fell on the shoulders of Sabina Karimova and Palina Kaspiarovich. Leyla Ahmadova is our young athlete. She needs time to perform at this level. But we could not stay out of team competitions to gain ranking points. We anticipated how Leyla would perform in advance. Sabina Karimova and Palina Kaspiarovich were able to show themselves in a good way. They held all their matches at an equal level. We will have to face these teams again in the upcoming tournaments after our injured players return to the lineup."

The specialist added that he had conversations with the team after the defeat against the Egyptian team in the matches for 9-16th places: "Then Sabina and Palina, almost both of them, defeated the Hong Kong sabre fencers. In the last match, we defeated the Olympic champion Ukrainian team. Yes, Olga Kharlan was not in their squad. But we were also deprived of the services of Anna Bashta and Zarifa Huseynova. In the end, we became 13th. But I think we could have hoped for more with the optimal squad."

Idman.biz