Lausanne, Switzerland, June 3, 2017 – Bulgaria’s opposite
Tsvetan Sokolov was the top scorer on the second competition day of the 2017 FIVB Volleyball World League, but his contribution of 29 points against Argentina was not enough for the southern European team to claim their first win. In what was the longest match of the day, the South Americans claimed their first victory instead, after a
five-set saga in Kazan.
Group 1
France, Poland and Canada are the three teams in Group 1 that managed to stay unbeaten after the second competition day.
The French upset the home side of Russia with a 3-1 win at the tournament in Kazan and are the only squad with a full set of six points. This match followed the thrilling five-setter between Argentina and Bulgaria, in which the South Americans emerged victorious despite a prolific performance by Tsvetan Sokolov on the other side of the net.
Poland came back from a set down at Italy to win by 3-1 and took the second place in the current Group 2 standings with 5 points. In Pesaro, Brazil achieved their first victory of the season – 3-1 against Iran.
The third place in the Group 1 table is occupied by Canada. The Canadians triumphed with a second 3-2 victory, this time over neighbours from USA in the North American derby in Novi Sad, where Belgium upset hosts Serbia with a speedy shutout.
The first competition weekend is coming to an end with another set of six Group 1 matches scheduled for Sunday.
Group 2
Three European teams, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey, each with two wins in two matches, lead the way in Group 2 after the second competition day.
Slovakia used their home-court advantage in Poprad to add another three points to their record with a 3-1 win against Australia. In that same pool Portugal managed a 3-2 victory over Japan.
The Slovenians are far away from home, all the way in Korea, but they also keep on top of things with a total of six points after claiming a 3-1 victory over the home team. Finland and the Czech Republic locked horns in battle for first win in Seoul and the Czechs got it after four sets of play.
At home, in Ankara, Turkey had no serious issues for a 3-0 win against Egypt, bringing their match point record to five. Before that, China took their first victory with a 3-1 final result against the Netherlands.
The first competition weekend is coming to an end with another set of six Group 2 matches scheduled for Sunday.
Group 3
Spain and Germany are split only on point ratio on top of the Group 3 ranking, as both teams stand at two wins, six points and 6-1 set ratio. The only other undefeated team in the group, Montenegro, comes third with five points. Interestingly, each of the six Group 3 matches on Saturday ended in four sets.
The Spaniards gained their second victory at their home tournament in Barcelona – 3-1 against Qatar. Mexico also felt almost at home there, as the Latin American squad handed Greece their second defeat to claim first victory for themselves.
In Frankfurt, the home side is also still unbeaten. On Saturday, Germany defeated neighbouring Austria. Before that, the Venezuelans made a late, but grand entrance into the competition. After forfeiting their first fixture on Friday, they played their first game against Kazakhstan and won it.
At home in Bijelo Polje, Montenegro defeated Chinese Taipei and Tunisia beat Estonia.
The first competition weekend is coming to an end with another set of six Group 3 matches scheduled for Sunday.
Top Scorer by Day
32 - Chuan Jiang of China v Turkey on June 2
29 - Tsvetan Sokolov of Bulgaria v Argentina on June 3
Top Scoring Performances
32 - Chuan Jiang of China v Turkey on June 2
29 - Tsvetan Sokolov of Bulgaria v Argentina on June 3
29 - Nathan Roberts of Australia v Portugal on June 2
27 - Evandro Guerra of Brazil v Iran on June 3
26 - Bram Van Den Dries of Belgium v Canada on June 2
Top Individual Serving Performances
6 - Pedro Rangel of Mexico v Greece on June 3
6 - Maxim Zhigalov of Russia v Argentina on June 2
4 - John Gordon Perrin of Canada v USA on June 3
4 - Bartlomiej Lemanski of Poland v Italy on June 3
4 - Marko Ivovic of Serbia v USA on June 2
Top Team Serving Performances
11 - Serbia v USA on June 2
10 - Venezuela v Kazakhstan on June 3
9 - USA v Canada on June 3
8 - France v Russia on June 3
8 - Canada v USA on June 3
8 - Mexico v Greece on June 3
8 - Russia v Argentina on June 2
Top Individual Blocking Performances
7 - Samuel Walker of Australia v Slovakia on June 3
7 - Bozidar Cuk of Montenegro v Tunisia on June 2
6 - Emerson Gonzalez of Venezuela v Kazakhstan on June 3
6 - Filip Cveticanin of Portugal v Japan on June 3
6 - Ales Holubec of Czech Republic v Finland on June 3
6 - Alen Pajenk of Slovenia v Korea on June 3
Top Team Blocking Performances
21 - Slovenia v Korea on June 3
21 - Montenegro v Tunisia on June 2
18 - Australia v Slovakia on June 3
18 - Czech Republic v Finland on June 3
17 - Russia v France on June 3
Highest Scoring Sets
30-28 - Slovakia v Australia on June 3
29-27 - China v Netherlands on June 3
27-25 - Netherlands v Egypt on June 2
27-25 - Tunisia v Montenegro on June 2
27-25 - Netherlands v Egypt on June 2
27-25 - Slovakia v Japan on June 2
Highest Scoring Matches
222 - Korea v Czech Republic 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 24-26, 25-20, 15-12) on June 2
219 - Australia v Portugal 3-2 (21-25, 25-20, 25-18, 22-25, 20-18) on June 2
217 - Belgium v Canada 2-3 (22-25, 25-19, 24-26, 25-23, 13-15) on June 2
215 - Turkey v China 3-2 (25-22, 25-20, 21-25, 24-26, 15-12) on June 2
214 - Bulgaria v Argentina 2-3 (23-25, 25-23, 25-20, 21-25, 12-15) on June 3