The Halkbank Ankara volleyball team, led by Radostin Stoychev, surprisingly dropped out in their very first match of the Turkish Cup tournament – AXA Sigorta Kupa Voley. The team from Ankara lost 0:3 (21-25, 25-27, 23-25) to Istanbul Büyükşehir Belediyespor, with the great hero of the match being Bulgarian national player Denislav Bardarov, who played at an exceptionally high level and led his team to victory.
🏐 Lineups
Halkbank Ankara:
Ulaş Kıyak, Yiğit Hamza Aslan, Ahmet Samet Baltacı, Marek Sotola, Yoandy Leal Hidalgo, Ertuğrul Gazi Metin, Volkan Döne (L), Umut Özdemir (L), Arda Bostan, Berk Dilmenler, Brodie Hofer, Yunus Emre Tayaz, Matey Kaziyski, Tsvetan Sokolov
Head Coach: Radostin Stoychev
Istanbul B. B. Spor:
Halil İbrahim Yücel, Cemal Özgür, Bradley Robert Gunter, Denislav Slavchev Bardarov, Selim Yıldız, Mustafa Cervahtoğlu, Fatih Yörümez (L), Batu Ercan Akbaba (L), Leonardo Ferreira, Atakan Topal, Özgür Benzer, Ali Fazlı, Kerem Süel, Eyüp Ensar Demirbiler
Head Coach: Hakan Özkan
📊 Score by Sets
| Set | Score | Duration (minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21–25 | 28 |
| 2 | 25–27 | 33 |
| 3 | 23–25 | 36 |
Total time: 97 minutes
🔥 Key Individual Performances
| Player | Team | Points | Attack | Reception | Efficiency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denislav Bardarov | Istanbul B. B. Spor | 26 | 61% | 61% | 50% |
| Marek Sotola | Halkbank | 17 | - | - | - |
| Yoandy Leal | Halkbank | 17 | - | - | - |
| Matey Kaziyski | Halkbank | 3 | - | - | - |
Tsvetan Sokolov did not take part in the match; in his place as opposite hitter, Czech national Marek Sotola started, who was one of Halkbank's top scorers with 17 points, the same number as the Cuban Yoandy Leal scored.
Matey Kaziyski, the new addition to the Turkish powerhouse, came into play in the second and third sets but failed to influence the course of the match, finishing with 3 points.
In stark contrast to this was the performance of Denislav Bardarov, who delivered a true masterpiece – 26 points, 61% positive reception, 61% successful attack, and 50% efficiency. The Bulgarian was not only a leader in offense but also a stable figure in defense.
The former opposite of Hebar Pazardzhik, the Canadian Bradley Gunter, finished with 11 points for the winners.
This was Bardarov's strongest match since playing in Turkey – a combination of maturity, confidence, and high technical skill. Istanbul BBSK's victory against one of the favorites for the trophy is a great achievement, and the Bulgarian outside hitter was its embodiment.
For Halkbank, this defeat is a signal that much more work is needed in the synchronization among the new players, especially considering the inclusion of Kaziyski and the rotation without Sokolov.
