The outside hitter delivered 20 points as the Asians swept France in Bangkok
Published 06:26, 19 Jun 2026
Zhuang moved up to third place in the VNL scorers table
China continue in top form in the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2026, and celebrated on Friday their fifth-straight victory in the tournament.
The Asians were part of the encounter that got the third day of matches in the week started in Ankara, Türkiye, and produced a dominant performance to sweep France 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-19) in the Turkish capital.
France 🇫🇷 vs. China 🇨🇳 - Highlights | Week 2 | Women's VNL 2026
With that, China extended their winning streak in the VNL 2026 to five matches. After beginning their campaign with an unexpected upset against Czechia in front of their home fans in Nanjing, the Asians have bounced back, beating Thailand, Serbia, Poland, Germany and France. With 13 points accumulated, they rank sixth in the VNL 2026 standings.
China's 23-year-old outside hitter Zhuang Yushan led the team with 20 points (16 kills, three blocks, one ace) and rose to third place in the VNL scoring table with 113 points.
Fellow outside hitter Dong Yuhan tallied nine points (seven kills, two aces), while opposite Tang Xin added another eight (seven kills, one block).
"This victory is very important for us" middle blocker Guo Zhongnan said. "Last year France defeated us at the World Championship, but now we got our revenge. I'm pleased with the team's performance."
Now winless in their last three matches, France are 16th in the VNL 2026 with three points. Against China, they had young opposite Cyrielle Depie as their leading scorer with nine points (all in kills).
The second match of the day in Ankara had Germany securing a 3-0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-21) victory over Belgium and taking a leap in the standings, going from 16th to 12th. Opposite Emila Weske scored 13 points (ten kills, two blocks, one ace) for the winning side, while her Belgian counterpart Pauline Martin topped all scorers with 16 (14 kills, one block, one ace), as she continues to top the VNL scoring chart, now with 144 points.
Saturday's match schedule in the Turkish capital will feature a pair of exciting duels, with China facing Brazil at 16:00 local time (13:00 GMT) and hosts Türkiye playing Germany at 19:30 (16:30 GMT).
In Bangkok, the day was marked by Canadian opposite Kiera Van Ryk surpassing the mark of 1,000 VNL career points.
The 27-year-old Van Ryk needed only three points to reach the milestone, but delivered 19 (18 kills, one block) and led Canada in their 3-1 (25-17, 23-25, 25-23, 28-26) win over Bulgaria.
Earlier, the Netherlands counted on 16 points (ten kills, six blocks) from middle blocker Indy Baijens to overcome Ukraine 3-0 (25-22, 25-17, 25-20).
On Saturday, the Dutch play Poland at 17:00 local time (10:00 GMT) and hosts Thailand face Canada at 20:30 (13:30 GMT).
Hosted in Pasig City, the Philippines, the third VNL pool also saw players reach significant milestones in the event.
In the first match of the day, Serbian middle blocker Hena Kurtagić registered three blocks to get to 101 in her VNL career. She contributed to her team's 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-18) win over the Dominican Republic, which had outside hitter Anja Zubić as the leading scorer with 16 points (13 kills, two blocks, one ace).
Later, Japanese captain Mayu Ishikawa scored her 900th point in the VNL in her team's 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 27-25) victory over Czechia and ended the match with 16, all in kills. Fellow outside hitter Yoshino Sato topped all scorers with 21 (18 kills, two blocks, one ace).
Saturday, the fourth day of matches in the Philippines, will see a pair of big encounters, with the United States and Italy battling at 16:00 local time (8:00 GMT) and Japan and the Dominican Republic clashing at 20:00 (12:00 GMT).
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