Bulgaria's Men's U21 national team finished in10th placeat the World Championship in China, after losing to Ukraine 0:3 sets (23:25, 21:25, 23:25) in their last match in Jiangmen. Ventsislav Simeonov's trainees could not find the strength for a final push, as the fatigue from the long tournament, the injury of the starting opposite hitter, and most importantly, the lack of motivation were evident in key moments.
Match flow
First set (23:25)– an even start, but at the end, after 19:19, 22:22, and 23:23, Ukraine showed more composure. Our wrong attack from zone 6, which would have given us set point, also had an impact. The set ended with a block against Kyndev.
Second set (21:25)– Bulgaria made a series of 4 points and managed to bring the score to 21:23, but our strength ran out here, and luck was not on our side – the last point came from an ace to the body of the rushing Hristov, who played in place of the injured opposite hitter Bachvarov.
Third set (23:25)– our boys maintained a decent distance and even got to serve for equalization at 23:24, but a service error by captain Aleksandar Kyndev ended the match.
Match statistics
| Element | Bulgaria | Ukraine |
|---|---|---|
| Attack | 37 | 51 |
| Block | 7 | 5 |
| Serve | 3 | 2 |
| Opponent errors | 20 | 16 |
| Total points | 67 | 74 |
The difference in attack is most clearly evident – 37 successful attacks for Bulgaria against 51 for Ukraine. Although our team was better at blocking and won more points from opponent errors, the low efficiency in attack tipped the scales.
Team elements
| Element | Bulgaria | Ukraine |
|---|---|---|
| Digs in defense | 48 | 38 |
| Reception | 58 | 60 |
| Distribution | 74 | 82 |
Bulgaria excelled in defense, with significantly more digs (48 against 38), which demonstrates desire and reaction in this element. However, Ukraine's more precise distribution (82 successful actions against 74) provided greater variability in attack.
Individual scorers
| Player | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Velichkov (No.3) | Bulgaria | 14 |
| Hristov (No.18) | Bulgaria | 11 |
| Tonkonoh (No.4) | Ukraine | 15 |
| Kuts (No.6) | Ukraine | 12 |
Individually, after the championship, Velichkov had the best overall statistics, ranking among scorers (17th), attackers (16th), blockers (10th), servers (11th), and receivers (19th). Delibosov was highest in the rankings, placing 6th among servers. Captain Kandez entered the top 20 among servers (8th) and receivers (17th).
Bulgaria finished the tournament in 10th place, a result far from their ambitions of entering the top eight. The team is set to participate in a European Championship next year.
