Turgay Zeytingoz: "The best performing team in the Azerbaijani Championship is Shaki" - Interview

Interview
22 January 2025 14:22
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Turgay Zeytingoz: "The best performing team in the Azerbaijani Championship is Shaki" - Interview

Interview with Turgay Zeytingoz, Sports Director of the Azerbaijan Basketball Federation, for Idman.biz

- The 12th round of the Azerbaijan Basketball League has kicked off. How would you evaluate the previous 11 rounds?

- Since the season began, we've seen many high-quality matches in the championship. Now, as we reach the twelfth week, it's clear that the points across teams are quite close to each other. Considering the playoffs at the end, I believe the competition will continue intensively until the last moment. I expect an exciting playoff with some surprising results. Some teams had a rough start to the season, such as NTD and Sumgayit. However, both teams made significant player additions and have been performing better in recent rounds. Some teams also underwent major roster changes. For instance, Neftchi had a very poor start but managed to turn their situation around with strategic decisions. Sabah is currently in a good place, but they too faced challenges during this period. I think we’ll see an even better performance from them as the season progresses.

- Which team do you think has been the best so far in the 11 rounds?

- So far, the best-performing team has been Shaki. After last year's disappointing results, they are now in first place in Group B. They play a very dominant style of basketball.

- How do you interpret the draw for the Azerbaijan Cup?

- I can say that it’s an interesting draw. Looking at the tournament standings today, it's possible to make predictions about which teams will meet in the semifinals and finals. However, there could still be some surprises, as each team will only face their opponent once. The performance of our local players is also crucial in this format. Unlike the league, the cup will be played in a 3+2 format instead of 4+1, meaning there will be two local players on the court. This year, the format for the Azerbaijan Cup has been changed, and we've moved to a different and more attention-grabbing format. Based on one game, the stronger team will be determined. In the first stage, the top three from Group A and the team finishing first in Group B will advance to the quarter-finals.

- Are there any updates regarding our women's national team?

- The team is very young. This will become more evident during our matches in the European Championship qualifiers in February. The basketball players coming from U16 and U18, who had successful results last year, will form the national team. Unfortunately, we don't have a chance in this stage, but we plan to give our young players a chance in the last two matches. Our opponents are very strong; both Belgium and Poland are dominant in European basketball. However, I believe we will play well and represent Azerbaijan successfully. Of course, we must also acknowledge that the players need time due to their age.

- After the last round of matches, there were some protests regarding referee decisions. What is your stance on this matter?

- It's not uncommon to hear complaints about referees in basketball matches around the world. Ultimately, refereeing is a tough job, and the losing side may feel wronged. However, we conduct objective evaluations. We watch the matches again with the referees and try to correct any mistakes if they are found. I can confidently say that, except for one or two matches, we haven’t seen any major referee errors in the Azerbaijan Basketball League. Overall, I’m satisfied with the refereeing in the championship. We are currently working on developing young referees, and we also have many experienced referees in the country. In this regard, we are fortunate.

Aytaj Sahed
Idman.biz