The team of Istanbul BB, which includes Georgi Seganov and Kristiyan Aleksov, suffered its first loss in the Turkish Efeler League. In a match from the third round, the team lost as a guest to Istanbul Genclik with2:3 (25:20, 20:25, 19:25, 28:26, 11:15)after 156 minutes of play. Georgi Seganov started as a starter and played the entire match, finishing with 3 points – two from attack and one from block. Kristiyan Aleksov remained without a point, with the electronic protocol noting a brief appearance in the third set.
The hosts made an impressive comeback after losing the first set. They won the next two sets with 25:20 and 25:19, but failed to close the match in the fourth set, which the guests snatched with 28:26. In the tie-break, Istanbul Genclik imposed their will with 15:11.
The most curious moment of the match, however, was the performance of the winners' setter, Cristian Manuel Tondike Mejias. He scored a total of 7 points from blocks – more than any other player on the court, including the middle blockers. For comparison, Furkan Dur, one of Istanbul BB's middles, finished with 4 successful blocks.
Mejias finished the match with a total of 10 points, adding three successful attacks to his seven blocks. His performance contributed to the hosts' huge superiority at the net – 20:10 in block points.
The most effective player for the winners was the Hungarian opposite Kristof Padar with 29 points, of which 23 were from attack, 4 blocks, and 2 aces. Padar is well known to Bulgarian fans, having been a teammate of national players Martin Atanasov and Zhasmin Velichkov at Italian Monza last season.
For Istanbul BB, the Iranian opposite Ali Fazli also finished with 29 points, scoring 26 successful attacks and three aces. Serbian national Uros Kovacevic added 20 points, including four aces.
Although the guests had a significant advantage from service – 11:4 in aces, Istanbul Genclik compensated with more effective attack (66:54) and twice as many successful blocks.
Thus, Istanbul BB broke their streak of two consecutive victories in the championship. In the next round, on October 31, Seganov and Aleksov's team will host Fenerbahce.