TV commentators most often call this type of attack the SHIFTED QUICK. In Polish volleyball, it is commonly referred to as ODKA. The most popular term worldwide is SHOOT or SEVEN. In other countries, you might encounter terms like SIIRTO in Finland, STEEK in the Netherlands, SETTE in Italy, and ZONA in Russia. We statisticians usually denote it with the code X7. What is it all about?
What is it?
I agree with the commentators that the SHIFTED QUICK is its most descriptive name. This is a type of middle blocker attack. It is based on the fact that the distance between the setter and the middle blocker is greater than in other types of middle attacks—roughly from 2 meters and upwards. This is a fairly difficult type of attack. It requires good synchronization between the setter and the middle blocker, as well as high precision from the setter. It is also characterized by great dynamics. The blocking team’s middle blocker must shift along with the middle blocker going for the shoot (and must do it even before the set is made). Only then they have a chance to block a potential attack. If they stay in the middle, they won’t make it there after the set.
Here you can see what the shifted quick looks like. The middle blocker makes a slight movement to the right, meaning they follow the “odka”:
Why is it used?
If the middle blocker has shifted with the middle blocker “going for the shoot” (as seen in the video above), it opens up the option to set the ball to the back (to the opposite), which can cause the blocking middle to be late. Why late? Standing in the middle of the court, the blocking team’s middle blocker has about 4.5 meters to cover (the entire court is 9 meters wide). If they shift toward the middle blocker, that distance increases. As a result, it will be easier for the opposite to score a point.
In the video below, you can see what happens when the middle blocker “goes for the shoot” and the setter sets to the back. In slow motion, you can clearly see that the middle blocker is slightly late with the block:
Finally, it’s worth mentioning that something like help for the shoot exists, but I think I’ll write about that another time. This is precisely the role of statisticians—to be able to predict the probability of the setter running a shoot in such a situation versus setting to other players.
Do you feel this post clearly explains what a shoot is?
Let me know so I can tell if my way of explaining things works well for the future 🙂