The Bulgarian national team for boys under 17 years old maintained first place in Group D of the World Championship in Doha and, after the matches of the third day, is among the four teams with the best performance in the tournament.
Ivan Stanev's boys are the only undefeated team in the group with 2 wins and a full tally of 6 points. Bulgaria has 6:1 games won and a point ratio of 1.129. Following us are Turkey with 4 points, Egypt with 2, and Spain without a point won.
| Rank | Team | Wins | Points | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bulgaria | 2 | 6 | 6:1 |
| 2 | Turkey | 1 | 4 | 5:3 |
| 3 | Egypt | 1 | 2 | 3:5 |
| 4 | Spain | 0 | 0 | 1:6 |
Bulgaria has a 2-point lead over Turkey before its last group match against the Turkish team on August 24. Egypt and Spain will play their last match on August 23, and even with a three-point victory, the Egyptians can reach a maximum of 5 points. Thus, Bulgaria will remain at the top of Group D even after tomorrow's matches. The format of the World Championship makes the overall team performance particularly important. The top three teams from each of the five groups and the best of the five teams that finished fourth qualify for the 1/8 finals. These 16 teams are then ranked for the elimination bracket according to a combined ranking system. Currently, Bulgaria is No. 4 in terms of performance. Only France, Iran, and Italy are ahead of the national team.
| Rank | Team | Wins | Points | Games | Point Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 2 | 6 | 6:0 | 1.829 |
| 2 | Iran | 2 | 6 | 6:0 | 1.351 |
| 3 | Italy | 2 | 6 | 6:1 | 1.134 |
| 4 | Bulgaria | 2 | 6 | 6:1 | 1.129 |
| 5 | Romania | 2 | 6 | 6:3 | 1.203 |
| 6 | Tunisia | 2 | 6 | 6:5 | 0.984 |
| 7 | Brazil | 2 | 5 | 6:2 | 1.298 |
| 8 | Turkey | 1 | 4 | 5:3 | 1.101 |
Italy and Bulgaria have completely identical main indicators – 2 wins, 6 points, and 6:1 sets. The Italians are ahead of ours due to a minimally better ratio of points won and lost – 1.134 against 1.129. Romania also has 2 wins and 6 points, but with 6:3 sets, which leaves them behind Bulgaria.
The position in the overall standings is important for the elimination phase, as it determines the seeding of the 16 qualified teams. With the current indicators, Bulgaria would be seeded at No. 4.
Of the matches on August 23, Bulgaria will most directly follow Argentina – Brazil, Iran – Chinese Taipei, and Italy – Cuba. Iran and Italy are immediately ahead of ours in the overall standings, while Brazil has 2 wins and 5 points and is also in the battle for the top positions. The results from Qatar – Tunisia and Spain – Egypt will also reshuffle the standings, but have less direct relevance to Bulgaria's place in the Top 5.
Bulgaria will conclude the group stage on August 24 with a direct match against Turkey. Then, both the final standings in Group D and the national team's position among the 16 teams that will advance to the 1/8 finals will become clear.
