Zhu Ting
Earvin N'Gapeth
Stat by stat
Bars are scaled to the leader in this list.
The verdict
Zhu Ting leads 2 of 4 categories. Our all-time ranking places Zhu Ting at #5 and Earvin N'Gapeth at #12.
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The case for Zhu Ting
The defining women's player of the late 2010s and one of the most complete attackers the game has seen. Zhu Ting exploded onto the world stage by carrying China to Olympic gold in Rio 2016, winning the tournament MVP, and added World Cup titles and MVP awards in 2015 and 2019. Dominating abroad with Turkey's Vakifbank, she won consecutive CEV Champions League titles and MVPs in 2017 and 2018, plus the Club World Championship, proving herself against the strongest club fields on earth. At over 1.95 metres with a long, whip-fast arm, she combines terminal power with the passing and defence of an outside hitter, giving China a genuine six-rotation superstar. Injuries and China's dip cost her a second Olympic title, but at her peak from roughly 2015 to 2019 she was, by wide agreement, the best player in the world - a modern benchmark for the outside hitter position. As of the 2024-25 season she continued at the elite level.
The case for Earvin N'Gapeth
The creative, unpredictable talisman who lifted France to the top of the men's game. An outside hitter with dazzling improvisation - trick sets, one-handed digs and audacious tips - N'Gapeth was the driving force and Most Valuable Player as France won their first-ever Olympic gold at Tokyo 2021, beating the Russian Olympic Committee in a five-set final. He earlier steered France to the 2015 European Championship, taking MVP honours, and to Nations League and World League success, forming the core of a golden French generation. At club level he collected Italian and Russian league and Champions League honours, thriving as a big-match performer whose flair masked elite fundamentals in reception and attack. Capable of turning a rally with a single moment of invention, N'Gapeth combined showmanship with genuine substance, and his leadership of France's rise from perennial contenders to Olympic champions secures his place among the outstanding outside hitters of the modern era.