On September 23, the Russian team held a duel with Kazakhstan at the Caspian Cup in Astrakhan. Opponents exchanged goals in the second half and drew the meeting in a draw – 1-1.

Nikolai Balashov appeared in the Russian national team, he took a place in the goal, field players Arser Bagirov and Rishat Kotlyarov, who celebrated the debut in the main team.

As on the eve, the Russian squad from the first minutes forced the opponent to defend. From close range, it was not possible to open an account with Ivan Milovanov, Nikolai Shisterov noted with a solid blow from the free kick. Almost all of our attacks were of a positional nature, and there was no optimal solution to how to score. In the 14th minute, the goalkeeper Igita first joined the offensive actions of Kazakhstan – according to the results of this combination, Orazov struck the post. Before the break, the account was never opened.

In the second half, Kazakhstan began to attack more often and more dangerous, the work of Nikolai Balashov increased. In the 28th minute, Igita advanced in the next raid, the opponent made a mistake in the transfer, and Artem Antoshkin opened an account with a blow from his half.

The pressure of the Kazakhs grew – a significant part of the second half passed with their advantage. By the last five minutes, the five of Kaka’s team’s attacks became permanent – here again you can highlight the confident game of Nikolai Balashov, who helped out in a number of episodes of the Russians. But in the 37th minute, and he was powerless when Knaub scored from the corner of the court 1-1.

The Russian squad rushed forward, but there was little time left. The result is a draw.