Poland vs Slovenia

Slovenia raced to a 4–1 lead in the opening set and the setback deepened for the hosts when Lemański suffered an ankle injury at 5–7 and had to leave the court. Poland levelled through a Bartłomiej Bołądź ace (11–11) and edged ahead late, earning set point at 24–22 after a Slovenian service error. Slovenia fought back to deuce, but a Bołądź kill followed by a Wilfredo Leon ace sealed the set 26–24.

Poland started the second set sluggishly (1–5, 5–9) and never fully recovered. Sašo Štalekar fired an ace (19–23) and Nik Mujanović converted at 20–24 before Jan Kozamernik finished from the middle to level the match at 21–25.

Grbić's side came out firing in the third, surging 6–1 with an efficient offensive display. They maintained a comfortable buffer throughout (11–6, 18–12) and closed it 25–19 on a Slovenian service error.

Slovenia refused to fade. The fourth set swung repeatedly: Poland led 8–6, then Rok Bracko's serving run flipped it to 9–12. Nejc Najdič fired an ace at 18–22 and Klemen Sen earned set point at 20–24. Jakub Majchrzak responded with two aces to narrow the gap to 23–24, but Mujanović hammered the winner to force a decider (23–25).

Poland seized control of the tie-break from the first rally, opening 3–0. Artur Szalpuk's ace stretched the lead to 8–4 at the changeover, and Jakub Majchrzak took over in the second half — finishing three attacks and adding a block as Poland opened 13–7. Slovenia clawed back three straight points (13–10), but a missed serve gave Poland match point, and Szalpuk ended it with a clinical kill (15–11).

Jakub Majchrzak (Poland) — The substitute middle blocker was instrumental off the bench, delivering two aces in the fourth-set fightback and three kills plus a block in the decisive tie-break. His composure under pressure was arguably the difference.

Artur Szalpuk (Poland) — Scored the match-winning kill and chipped in a crucial ace in the fifth set. His energy off the bench gave Poland a spark when they needed it most.

Bartłomiej Bołądź (Poland) — Held the right side together with key attacks in the tight first set, finishing with several clutch points.

Nik Mujanović (Slovenia) — Slovenia's most consistent attacker, delivering in the clutch in sets two and four, including the set-winning kill that forced the tie-break.

Player of the match: Jakub Majchrzak

The final set scores (26–24, 21–25, 25–19, 23–25, 15–11) tell the story of two teams trading control. Poland won the serve-and-block battle at critical moments: Leon and Szalpuk aces in sets one and five, and Majchrzak's two aces in the fourth kept Slovenia's serve reception under pressure. Slovenia, however, matched Poland in attack output across the middle frames, with Štalekar and Kozamernik scoring efficiently from the middle. The narrow total points margin (Poland 110–104) reflects a fixture that genuinely could have gone either way — fitting for a rivalry that has now produced five-set epics in both the VNL and the Wagner Memorial this season.

Poland collect 2 points from the 3–2 win (tournament rules: 3–2 = 2 points for the winner, 1 for the loser), while Slovenia leave with a bonus point. France top the table after a 3–0 sweep of USA earlier on Friday. Poland meet USA on Saturday 29 August at 17:00 local time, while Slovenia face France at 14:00. For Grbić's side, Lemański's ankle will be the primary concern ahead of the Euro 2026 championship later this year.

A valuable test against a Slovenia side that has become a genuine rival, and a win that required real character after losing a key player to injury early. The five-set grind will tell Grbić more about his squad depth than any straight-sets win would have — but the injury cost tempers the optimism.

Poland 3–2 Slovenia (26:24, 21:25, 25:19, 23:25, 15:11)