Inside the Numbers - Set Distribution Turkey
#RoadtoTokyo
In the match between Turkey and Belgium in the CEV Tokyo Volleyball European Qualification 2020, there was a big divide between the first two sets and the last three. This is because the setter for Turkey in the first two sets was primarily Cansu Ozbay, while the last three were dominated by veteran Naz Aydemir. Turkey is in the unique position in that it has two top class setters, so it will be interesting to see how the team plays differently depending on who is the orchestrater of the offense.
Cansu Ozbay was the setter in the first sets that saw Turkey dominate their opponents 25-20 and 25-15. The set distribution can give us some insight into how this was achieved. The most telling stat is that that Ozbay ran 31% of the actions through the middle of the court. This means that she was able to run a lot of first tempo, whether it was in the front court with a middle hitting a quick or in the back row with an outside hitting a pipe. Whether Turkey’s dominance was because of Cansu’s set choices, or the setting choice was a result of great passing & serving of turkey is tough to say.
Naz Ayedmir came in to relieve Cansu after a rough start to the 3rd set that saw Belgium with a multiple point lead early. Her setting targets look quite different from Ozbay’s. Due to some stronger serving pressure and weaker passing, Naz was forced to rely on her wings much more, going to them 87% of the time. As you can see in the clip, many times Naz had no other option than to set the opposite corner. Turkey struggled in sets 3 and 4 due to unforced attacking and passing errors, but pulled themselves together for a 5-set win.
Data provided by Hawk-eye Innovations