TURIN, Italy (AP) — Poland beat Brazil in straight sets on Sunday to retain its World Championship title, with the United States finishing third.
Led by an unstoppable Bartosz Kurek, Poland took the tight first set and went on to win 28-26, 25-20, 25-23 in 97 minutes.
Kurek accounted for 24 points, followed by Michal Kubiak with 12 and Artur Szalpuk with 10. Wallace Souza was the top scorer for Brazil, with 14 points.
It was Poland's third world title, having also won it in 1974 as well as 2014 on home soil, where it also beat Brazil.
It was Brazil's fifth successive appearance in the finals, having won three straight titles prior to 2014. It also won the Olympic title in 2016.
Earlier, the U.S. beat Serbia 3-1 — 23-25, 25-17, 32-30, 25-19 — thanks to an almost perfect performance from Matt Anderson, who weighed in with 29 points.
