2026 VNL Jun 17: Vargas, Stysiak Return; Brazil, Japan Stay Perfect

VNL 2026 action resumed on June 17, with 18 teams continuing their campaign on the first day of week 2 across three pools.

Pool 5 (Pasig, Philippines)

In the opening match of week 2, USA dominated the Dominican Republic in straight sets (25-20, 25-19, 25-12). The win improved USA’s record to 4-1, while the Dominican Republic is yet to secure a win after five matches. In a post-match interview with VBTV, USA opposite Jordan Thompson expressed pride in how the team came together despite changing rosters week to week. She said being gritty is part of their DNA, and they showed that on the day. Looking ahead, she said they need to take one game at a time and prepare because every team in the VNL is strong.

In the second match of the day in the Philippines, Italy defeated Czechia in straight sets (25-18, 25-21, 25-22) to improve their record to 4-1. Czechia’s record fell to 3-2. Italian outside hitter Ekaterina Antropova delivered a stellar performance of 21 points in just three sets with six aces to help the world ranked number one side secure the straight set victory.

In the final match of the day in Pool 5, Japan defeated Serbia in a tightly contested five set thriller (20-25, 26-24, 18-25, 32-30, 15-7) to extend their perfect record to five matches. Serbia’s record dropped to 1-4. The fourth set was extremely tight. Japan held two set points at 24-22, but Serbia fought back to claim the lead and the first match point at 24-25, and went on to hold four more match points (25-26, 26-27, 27-28, 28-29), but could not convert any of them. Japan eventually seized their chance to win the set before dominating the fifth. It was a cruel loss for Serbia, who came agonizingly close to forcing a different outcome.

Pool 6 (Bangkok, Thailand)

Moving to Pool 6, the first match in Bangkok saw Canada defeat the Netherlands 3-1 (20-25, 25-19, 25-17, 25-20). Canada’s record improved to 3-2, while the Netherlands dropped to 2-3. Canadian opposite Kiera Van Ryk delivered 26 points with six aces for the North American side to help secure the win.

In the second match of the day in Bangkok, Poland swept Bulgaria 3-0 (25-12, 25-22, 25-23) to improve their record to 4-1. Bulgaria’s record dropped to 1-4. In a post-match interview with VBTV, Polish opposite Magdalena Stysiak, making her first appearance of the tournament, attributed the victory to their block and defense. She admitted she did not find her rhythm quickly and was not happy with her own performance, but said the most important thing was the team won with three points. She added that she needs more time to get back to 100%.

The final match of the day between host Thailand and Ukraine was another closely contested five set match, with the European side ultimately clinching a 3-2 victory (25-23, 19-25, 28-26, 22-25, 15-10) to secure their second win of the tournament. Thailand is yet to secure a victory after five matches. In a post-match interview with VBTV, Thailand head coach Kiattipong Radchatagriengkai said he hopes the team can reduce their errors going forward, as they had many on the day. He also hopes the team can recover physically and mentally, implement their tactics, and build confidence to perform better.

Pool 4 (Ankara, Türkiye)

Over to Pool 4, the first match in Ankara saw China defeat Germany after five sets (25-27, 25-23, 18-25, 25-20, 15-6) to improve their record to 4-1. Germany’s record dropped to 1-4. Chinese outside hitter Zhuang Yushan was the top scorer of the match once again, scoring 27 points. This was her fourth consecutive match as top scorer, following Week 1 matches against Thailand, Serbia (tied), Poland, and now this match.

The second match of the day in Ankara saw Brazil cruise past France in straight sets (25-22, 25-19, 25-15) to maintain their perfect record after five matches. France’s record dropped to 1-4. In a post-match interview with VBTV, France head coach Cesar Hernandez Gonzalez acknowledged that it is never easy to play against Brazil, who are playing very well in the VNL and recently defeated Italy. He said in matches like these he cares more about how his team performs than the score, and he identified areas they need to improve.

In the final match of the matchday, Türkiye dominated Belgium in front of the home crowd (25-14, 25-13, 25-13) to claim their third victory. Belgium remained on two wins. Turkish star Melissa Vargas made her first appearance of VNL 2026 after not playing in Week 1, and she did not disappoint, finishing as the top scorer of the match with 17 points.

(Featured image source: Volleyball World)

(Written by Boris CHUNG Bok Man)