Rodl: Estonia road game will be challenge for Germany

HAGEN (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers) - Germany topped a difficult Group G in the First Round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers with a perfect 6-0 record, including two wins over powers Serbia.

But head coach Henrik Rodl is not taking anything for granted and knows Germany's Second Round opener at Estonia will be tough fight.

The Germans had a less-than-ideal warm-up to their upcoming window, which has a showdown with Estonia in Tallin on September 13 and a home game versus Israel in Leipzig on September 16. In a four-team tournament in Hamburg, Germany lost to Turkey 100-79 despite 32 points and 14 assists from Dennis Schroder and then fell 71-62 to Italy to finish fourth.

Rodl spoke to FIBA.basketball about Germany's successful First Round as well as the next stage as the country aims to return to the World Cup after missing out in Spain 2014.

Germany face two new teams in this window, the first of the Second Round. First off is Estonia. What do you know about them as a team?
I have, of course, acquainted myself already with our three next opponents that we will face. Greece is clearly the strongest. Estonia and Israel are both great teams, on the same level as us; and I feel we should be able to beat them on our home court. Estonia is a team that does not have big stars yet, but a team that knows how to play and is especially dangerous from outside. So we have to be very careful. Away games are always especially difficult. And in the Second Round windows we always have our home game as the second game. We need to see how this feels. This first game in Tallinn I think is going to be a challenge.

Your team then takes on Israel in Leipzig. What sort of game do you expect from them?
Israeli teams are always extremely motivated. We lost against Israel at EuroBasket 2017. A top class European team and ultimately in terms of score, the team closest to us. This is a very important game for us. If we win the game in Leipzig, we would have taken a large step toward the World Cup. A very important game.

"WE WANT TO DO EVERYTHING IT TAKES TO QUALIFY FOR THE WORLD CUP."- Rodl

Germany won all six of their games so far. How do you rate the team's performances?
Of course, it could not have been better. I think, when we saw the group, we knew we had to beat Austria definitely twice. We had a lot of respect for Georgia, a very good team, because we had just played against them at FIBA EuroBasket 2017. But you should finish ahead of them. And then there was Serbia, silver medal winner at the last Olympics and the last EuroBasket. That we beat this team twice is a borderline sensation and I'm very happy about this. Of course, this is only the first step. Now we face the Second Round. We want to do everything it takes to qualify for the World Cup.

Germany had a great comeback against Serbia last time out. We saw you and your staff getting very animated courtside. How good was that win?
I think this is a characteristic of the whole team, including the staff. We're in this with an incredible amount of passion. Every game was very intense. We were behind in some games. Of course, a 6-0 record sounds easy, but it was anything but that. In the game in Serbia, my call in the last time out was: "Let's play this game well until the end and look at the direct comparison". With us being behind 5 respectively 7 points, our chances of winning were relatively low. But then we had one or two swings for us. The team was unbelievably calm and focused and won the game. We were very happy. About each win we were very happy.

It was the first win for a German national team in Serbia. How was the feedback?
These windows always take place in an interval of about three months. Because of the different conditions, we have very different rosters. Each roster has managed to build a team during these windows. To me, that is the key to the success we have had. The game in Serbia was, of course, also a very special team effort, because the team stayed together and so we could celebrate the win together.

You won bronze as a player back at the World Cup in 2002. How was that experience? Where did it rank in your career highlights?
I was privileged to be a part of the next big German generation. With the first big generation that became European champion in 1993, I was the youngest player. In 2002, I was the oldest player. Due to an injury, that was also the end of my international career. That's why I remember that tournament very fondly. It is a very special memory.

Rodl celebrates finishing third at the World Cup in 2002 with German assistant coach Armin Andres.

How big would it be for German Basketball to reach the World Cup after missing out on the last one?
The World Cup has been upgraded a lot by the new FIBA regulations with the EuroBasket only being played every four years now. In order to qualify for the Olympics, you have to qualify for the World Cup first and then reach a certain place, to reach the qualification or qualify directly.  Thus, the World Cup is now more important than ever. 

FIBA