Today, «Astana» is starting another season in the VTB United League, and their opponent on the  »Saryarka» velodrome floor will be «Zenit» from St. Petersburg.

The season for Oleg Kiselev's team begins two weeks later than for other teams, as five players from the capital's team were representing the Kazakhstan national team at the Asian Games in Hangzhou.

«Zenit» has already begun its season in the league with one win and two losses, currently holding the 8th position in the standings. However, the impression that may arise from this is deceptive, as not long ago, it was precisely the team from St. Petersburg that won the VTB United League Super Cup for the second time in a row. Even though the club was only established in 2014, it managed to win the title in the 2021/22 season and establish itself as one of the strongest teams in the league.

«We were supposed to start this season better, but since it didn't work out, we now intend to rectify the situation. 'Astana' is a serious opponent who will definitely want to start the season well, especially at home. But our task is to please our fans, and we will try to do that,» said Zenit forward Igor Volkhin before the game.

It is worth noting that during the off-season, American center Royce Hamm joined «Astana's» roster, who played for today's opponents in the previous championship.

The game will start at 3:00 p.m. You can watch the live broadcast on the Qazsport channel and the official club website.

«Astana» officially opened the season of big basketball by hosting «Zenit» from St. Petersburg at home.

Although the guests quickly took the lead at the beginning of the match, but later, Oleg Kiselyov's team managed to get back into the game and significantly reduce the deficit by halftime. The same scenario repeated itself in the second half: with less than two minutes left until the end of the match, «Astana» was only 4 points behind «Zenit.» However, the defending champion of the VTB United League Super Cup still secured a victory — 69:78.

Former «Zenit» player Royce Hamm performed well in the «Astana» lineup. The American basketball player scored 20 points, made 7 rebounds, and had 2 steals. It is also worth noting Adam Kunkel (18 points) and Marcell Johnson (10 points, 5 rebounds, and 10 assists).
 
«First of all, I wish «Astana» all the best. I believe we played well in defense and offense for most of the game, but in some stretches of the second and the last quarter, we almost ruined it. Our game had dangerous ups and downs. We won, which is good news, but the team should improve and draw conclusions from today's game,» - said the rival team's head coach, Javier Pascual, after the match.

The match had fantastic support — 1,517 spectators attended the game.

On October 18-19, «Astana Academy» will play at the «Saryarka» velodrome. The first opponent of our guys in the National League will be «Aktobe.» Meanwhile, on October 19, the main team will play in Nizhny Novgorod.

VTB United League will return to Astana on October 25: «Avtodor» from Saratov will visit as guests.