The second match day of the second week of the Women's Volleyball Nations League offered six matches in Pasig City, Bangkok, and Ankara. Japan solidified its place among the leaders after a clean sweep against Czechia, Serbia broke its negative streak against the Dominican Republic, and the Netherlands left no chances for Ukraine. Bulgaria once again remained without points after a dramatic battle against Canada, while Germany and China recorded important victories in the fight for a spot in the Final Eight.

Serbia – Dominican Republic 3:0(25:19,25:23,25:18)

The Serbian women's national team achieved an extremely important victory, breaking their streak of five consecutive losses with a decisive success over the Dominican Republic.
The Serbians dominated from the opening serve and controlled the course of the match throughout. The second set was the most contested, when the Dominicans reduced their deficit from 16:21 to just two points, but Nina Cajic delivered the decisive attack for 25:23.
In the third set, Zoran Terzic's team finally broke the opponent's resistance and closed the match without problems.
The top scorer for Serbia was Anja Zubić with 16 points, Nina Čajič added 13, and Branka Tica finished with 9 points. For the Dominican Republic, Géraldine González scored 11 points.
The victory elevated Serbia to 11th place in the VNL and to 9th position in the world rankings. The Dominican Republic remains without success and is now 18th in the tournament's provisional standings, having dropped to 13th place in the world.

Ukraine – Netherlands 0:3(22:25,17:25,20:25)

After the victory over Thailand and the loss to Poland, the Ukrainians failed to spring a surprise against one of the most consistent teams in the tournament.
Ukraine started the first set strongly and led for a long time, but the Dutch turned the tide at the end and took the initiative. In the next two sets, the Netherlands demonstrated higher attacking efficiency and fewer errors.
The top scorer for Ukraine was Yulia Dymar with 10 points. For the Netherlands, Bajema finished with 16 points.
After the success, the Netherlands remains ninth in the VNL and retains eighth place in the world rankings. Ukraine is 14th in the tournament and remains 16th in the world.

Japan – Czechia 3:0(25:15,25:23,27:25)

Japan continued its magnificent performance in the VNL 2026, recording its sixth win in seven matches after a victory over Czechia.
The first set was entirely dictated by the Asians, who crushed their opponent 25:15. In the next two sets, the Czechs offered far more serious resistance, but the Japanese showed more class in decisive moments and closed the match without losing a set.
Statistics clearly show where the difference came from. Japan scored 52 points from attack compared to 37 for Czechia, which compensated for their deficit in blocks (5 versus 9). The Asians also had superiority in defense with 87 digs compared to 67, which allowed them to organize more attacks and maintain constant pressure on their opponent.
The top scorer for Japan was Yoshino Sato with 21 points, and Mayu Ishikawa added 16. For Czechia, Mlejnková scored 13 points, while Orvošová finished with 11.
The success propelled Japan to second place in the VNL provisional standings, and in the world rankings, the Asians climbed one position to fourth place. Czechia remains tenth in the tournament but dropped one position to 13th place in the world.

China – France 3:0(25:18,25:17,25:19)

China continues its impressive climb in the VNL. The Asians recorded their fifth consecutive victory after a decisive success against France in Ankara.
After the surprising defeat to the Czech Republic at the start of the tournament, the Chinese women have not made another mistake and now have wins against Thailand, Serbia, Poland, Germany, and France.
Zhuang Yushan was once again above all with 20 points (16 from attack, 3 from block, and 1 ace). Dong Yuhan added 9 points, and Tan Xin finished with 8.
For France, Cyrielle Depi was the top scorer with 9 points.
China climbed to sixth place in the VNL and to the sixth position in the world rankings. France remains 16th in the tournament and retains 14th place in the world.

Bulgaria – Canada 1:3 (17:25, 25:23, 23:25, 26:28)

Bulgaria recorded a third consecutive loss in the second week of the tournament, but this time left significantly better impressions against the strong team of Canada.
After a weak first set, the national team responded excellently and equalized after a 25:23 score in the second set. The third and fourth sets were decided at the very end, with the Bulgarians even having a set point in the fourth, but failing to convert it.
Borislava Saykova was the top scorer for Bulgaria with 14 points, followed by Miroslava Paskova with 13. For Canada, Kiera Van Ryk scored 19 points, and Emily Maglio added 16.
The defeat leaves Bulgaria in 17th place in the VNL with one win from seven matches. The national team also fell to a record low of 27th place in the world rankings. Canada remains seventh in the tournament and tenth in the world.

Belgium – Germany 0:3 (20:25, 19:25, 21:25)

Germany continued its upward trend and achieved a clear victory over Belgium in Ankara.
The Germans controlled the match for most of the time and deservedly earned the three points. Opposite hitter Emila Weske was the top scorer for the winners with 13 points (10 attacks, 2 blocks, and 1 ace).
For Belgium, Pauline Martin once again impressed with 16 points and continues to be the top scorer in VNL 2026 with 144 points.
After the success, Germany climbed to 12th place in the VNL, while Belgium remains 13th. In the world rankings, the positions are maintained – Germany is 11th, and Belgium is 15th.

VNL 2026 Standings after the second day of the second week

After the second day of the second week, the battle for places in the Final Eight is intensifying. Brazil and Japan continue to dictate the pace at the top, while China and Canada are establishing themselves as serious contenders for the leading positions. At the bottom of the standings, Serbia took an important step towards safety, while Bulgaria and the Dominican Republic remain in the most difficult situation before the week's concluding matches.