The young "lions" played a real thriller in the Chinese city of Jiangmen and prevailed 3:2 sets over Brazil in their last match of the preliminary phase of the U21 World Championship. Thus, Ventsi Simeonov's proteges secured a place in the eliminations.
The match proceeded with sharp amplitudes - an excellent start for our team with a 2:0 lead, followed by a collapse and the Brazilians equalized. In the tie-break, however, the Bulgarian team showed character and concentration to close the match with 15:10. And all this with a huge psychological advantage for the South Americans, who made a partial comeback, and in the fourth set literally crushed the Bulgarians.
🏆 Score by sets
| Team | 1st set | 2nd set | 3rd set | 4th set | 5th set | Final score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | 25 | 25 | 20 | 12 | 15 | 3 |
| Brazil | 17 | 16 | 25 | 25 | 10 | 2 |
The beginning was more than impressive - convincing 25:17 and 25:16. After that, however, our team lost the initiative and allowed Brazil to dominate in the third and fourth sets. The decisive fifth set showed the team's mental resilience - 15:10 and a deserved victory.
📊 Team statistics
| Statistic | Bulgaria | Brazil |
|---|---|---|
| Attack points | 47 | 59 |
| Block | 13 | 7 |
| Serve (aces) | 7 | 5 |
| Points from opponent's errors | 30 | 22 |
| Total points | 97 | 93 |
Brazil excelled in attack (59 vs 47), but Bulgaria compensated with a stronger block (13 vs 7) and more points from service (7 vs 5). It also proved crucial that the opponent made more unforced errors.
🔍 Play by elements
| Element | Bulgaria | Brazil |
|---|---|---|
| Digs | 51 | 65 |
| Reception | 73 | 85 |
| Setting (good sets) | 99 | 116 |
Here, Brazil's advantage is obvious – better reception and more accurate rallies. However, ours compensated with concentration in key moments and a stable block.
👑 Top scorers
| Team | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | Aleksandar Kandev (№13) | 18 |
| Bulgaria | Stiliyan Delibosov (№8) | 15 |
| Brazil | Bryan (No. 5) | 22 |
| Brazil | Thiago (No. 16) | 16 |
Captain Aleksandar Kandev was once again a leader in attack for Bulgaria, and Delibosov contributed to the victory with power in the middle. Although Bryan turned out to be the top scorer on the court with 22 points, our team's collective play brought success.
Tomorrow, the Bulgarians will face the first-placed team from Group A - USA, in a battle for a spot among the world's top 8.
photos:volleyballworld.com
