Tomorrow, the Bulgarian women's national team will play in a decisive semifinal at the World Championship in Surabaya, Indonesia. The match will be played at 12 PM, Bulgarian time. Their opponent will be Japan – one of the most consistent and tactically disciplined teams in the tournament. The two teams already met in Group D, where the Asian team convincingly won 3:0. The match time has not yet been officially announced, but expectations are for a great spectacle with a spot in the final as the reward.

In their quarterfinal match, the Japanese faced Turkey and achieved a clean 3:0 victory (25:23, 25:21, 25:20). The score does not fully reflect the difficulty of the individual sets but shows the Asian team's ability to control key moments and impose its own pace.

The numbers clearly highlight Japan's advantage. They were more effective in attack – 47 successful finishes against 39 for Turkey, skillfully seeking long rallies and waiting for the opportune moment to break through. Although the Turkish team was better at blocking (10 against 6), the Japanese compensated with fewer errors and stability in difficult situations. On serve, they had a slight edge (4 aces against 2), and from opponent's errors, they won 18 points – an important indicator of disciplined play.

In defense, the Asian team shone with 110 saved balls against 89 for Turkey, which allowed them to build numerous counterattacks. Reception was even (62 for Japan against 71 for Turkey), but the Japanese more successfully converted first passes into attack. Japan's setters also had better statistics – 141 successful sets against 121, providing greater variety in attacks.

The upcoming semifinal will be a serious test for our girls. Japan plays with a high tempo, excellent defense, and tactical precision. To successfully counter them, Bulgaria will need to maintain stable attacking efficiency, win prolonged rallies, and match their level of play in defense. Only with an even battle in these key elements can we dream of a spot in the final.