The Bulgarian national team not only concluded the second week of the Volleyball Nations League with an impressive three wins out of four matches in Ljubljana but also left a significant mark in the individual rankings of the tournament. After eight played matches, several Bulgarian internationals are among the leaders in the most important statistical indicators, which is further proof of the strong performance of Gianlorenzo Blengini's team. The official statistics from Volleyball World place Bulgarian volleyball players in leading positions in almost all key elements of the game.
Aleksandar Nikolov stands out most prominently. Bulgaria's star tops the tournament's best scorer ranking with 194 points, just one more than Belgium's Ferre Reggers (193). Alex's tally includes 174 points from attack, 8 successful blocks, and 12 aces.

In addition to being the leader in scoring, Nikolov is also second among the best attackers. The Bulgarian outside hitter has 174 points from attack with an excellent 54.21% success rate, with only Belgium's Reggers ahead of him with 179 points.
Captain Alex Grozdanov also finds a place among the world's best. The middle blocker shares fifth place in the best blockers' ranking with 19 successful blocks and an average of 2.38 per match. Only Canada's Nathan Hoag (34), Turkey's Bedirhan Bülbül (23), and Ukraine's Semeniuk (22) are ahead of him.

Among setters, Simeon Nikolov continues to impress. The 19-year-old talent ranks fifth with 219 successful sets, averaging 27.38 per match. Only France's Antoine Brizard, Brazil's Fernando Kreling (Cachopa), Slovenia's Uroš Planinšič, and Chinese setter Wang H.W. are ahead of him.

Bulgaria also has two representatives among the tournament's best defenders. Libero Damyan Kolev shares eighth place with 58 digs, averaging 7.25 per match. Setter Simeon Nikolov also makes it into the Top 10, ranking tenth with 51 digs and an average of 6.38 per match.

The strong Bulgarian presence is also evident in the serving rankings. Aleksandar Nikolov shares third place with 12 aces, Simeon Nikolov is fourth with 11, and Asparuh Asparuhov is also fourth with 11 direct points from serves.

A little further down the list are Ilia Petkov with 7 aces and Martin Atanasov with 6.

photos: Nikolay Varadinov