Havana, October 11 (RHC) - Cuba's top beach volleyball duo of Noslen Diaz and Jorge Luis Alayo will be looking for a place among the top 16 in the World Championship, to be held in Tlaxcala, Mexico, on Wednesday.

As leaders of the balanced Group I, with 2 successes and one setback, the Cubans advanced directly to the round of 16, where they will be rivals of the Italians Daniele Lupo and Enrico Rossi, in a rematch.

According to data from Team Vívela, the young Cubans were eliminated by another Italian team in the previous year's World Championship, held in Rome, and finished in 17th place.

In Mexico, the Italians finished second in Group-A, only losing in a tie-break to the Norwegian Olympic and world champions Mol/Sorum, and are currently ranked 22nd in the world.

Lupo is Olympic runner-up in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and has been to 3 Olympic Games.

The Cubans have one win against the Italian duo, as they defeated them at this year's Pro Tour stop in La Paz, Mexico, with a 2-0 slate (21-18 and 23-21) in the group stage.