Bulgaria complete dramatic comeback to seal place in final four
Hristo Tsvetanov celebrates Bulgaria's progress to the semi-finals
France
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November 28, Hiroshima: Bulgaria came back from the dead against France to preserve their unbeaten record and clinch their place in the semi-finals.
France had threatened to blow Pool F wide open as they raced into a two-set lead, but Bulgaria roared back to take the match 23-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-22, 15-10 and book their ticket to Tokyo.
The result leaves Bulgaria clear at the top of Pool F with a 6-0 win-loss record, but means France must win their final match against Italy to stand any chance of making the knockout phase.
Bulgaria's two top marksmen, Matey Kaziyski and Vladimir Nikolov, wasted no time introducing themselves as they opened the scoring for their side.
France hit back with the serving game which has brought them so much success in this tournament, as Pierre Pujol landed an early ace.
But Kaziyski responded by notching two of his own, and Bulgaria held their lead to go into the first TTO 8-6 ahead.
The Bulgarians threatened to open up a gap as Kaziyski smashed in further points, but after French coach Phillipe Blain called a time-out at 13-10 down, his side responded by drawing level.
Guillaume Samica was beginning to find more room, and by the time the second TTO came round, the French had edged into the lead for the first time since the early sparring.
France took the opportunity to compound their advantage with more points from Samica and Frantz Granvorka, who had been strangely subdued up until that point.
The same could not be said of libero Jean-Francois Exiga, whose constant vocal encourgement was spurring his teammates further into the lead.
Evgeni Ivanov managed a crucial block on Granvorka to give Bulgaria hope whilst 22-17 down, and raids from Kaziyski and Nikolov reduced the gap even more.
But France had already taken themselves to the brink of set point, and when it came, Granvorka made no mistake.
France's good form continued into the second set, and luck seemed to be in their favour too.
Nikolov blasted the ball into French territory, and although captain Stephane Antiga could only deflect the ball with his leg, it was enough to salvage an opportunity to feed the waiting Granvorka for the point.
But Bulgaria persevered, and good all-round play by Plamen Konstantinov kept them close on France's heels.
Pujol was in inspired form, however, spraying the ball around the court and contributing another ace as the French began to stretch their legs.
Granvorka was also getting closer to his imperious best, galloping down the right flank to help France into a 16-12 second TTO lead.
Konstantinov would not let them get too far ahead, however, hauling his teammates up by the bootlaces to cut the gap to just two points.
Hristo Tsvetanov was also racking up points at the net, as Bulgaria threatened to overtake their opponents at the death.
But another Granvorka spike gave France set point at 24-22, and when Bulgaria could not return a serve from the number 9, France had doubled their advantage.
Another Pujol ace helped France into a 6-3 lead as the third set got underway, and a long spike from the Bulgarian attack extended it to 10-6.
But Ivanov had continued as he left off in the second set, using his gargantuan frame at the net to help his side draw level at 12-12.
Kaziyski and Andrey Zhekov also pulled off huge blocks as Bulgaria continually frustrated France's efforts to break through, but it was the French who carried a narrow 16-15 advantage into the second TTO.
Boyan Yordanov had taken up the slack on Bulgaria's right wing with Nikolov now on the bench, but Granvorka was still doing the same for France.
A misjudged Granvorka spike did allow Bulgaria to finally overturn the lead, however, and at 21-20 the Bulgarians neede to take their chances to stay alive.
A marathon rally soon after ended with set point for Bulgaria at 24-21, and Tsvetanov rose at the net to claw a set back for his side.
The rallies continued as the fourth set began, with Bulgaria emerging with the early lead.
France coach Blain had shuffled his pack, bringing on Gerald Hardy Dessources and Florian Kilama, and Hardy Desources hammered in a spike at the net as France tried to get back on track.
But Bulgaria's third set revival had given them the momentum, and Konstantinov was playing his captain's role to a tee.
Granvorka kept knocking at the door, however, and soon his perseverance paid off as France hit back to 12-12.
Kaziyski hit another ace as Bulgaria began to creep ahead at 18-15, and at 20-18 they were even closer to levelling the match.
The tension was rising, and soon France were back in the match as Granvorka and Samica bagged big points. But a block by Zhekov gave Bulgaria set point, and Kaziyski made no mistake.
Bulgaria carried their momentum into the tie-break set, as Kaziyski began to come more and more into his own. Samica and Antiga made sure Bulgaria could not get too far ahead, but France were being forced onto the back foot by their opponents' aggressive play.
At 10-7 Bulgaria were close to pulling off a remarkable comeback, and a French serve into the net brought the possibility closer.
Another dramatic rally ended with match point for Bulgaria, and Konstantinov planted a power spike to send his teammates rushing off the bench and into the semi-finals.
