Hyderabad, (Samajweekly) The Kolkata Thunderbolts skipper Ashwal Rai produced a fabulous performance to help his team record a thrilling 3-2 win over Calicut Heroes in the third match of the RuPay Prime Volleyball League at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium here on Monday.
Kolkata Thunderbolts took down Calicut Heroes 15-13, 12-15, 15-10, 12-15, 15-13. Kolkata picked up two points from this match. Kolkata Thunderbolts’ Ashwal Rai was adjudged the Player of the Match.
Skipper Ashwal Rai got Kolkata off to a strong start as the side took the lead at 5-2. Moments later, Aravindhan S coolly tapped the ball over the net and Kolkata continued to control the proceedings at 6-4.
Jerome Vinith tried to keep the Calicut Heroes in the contest but Rai kept producing superb spikes which helped Kolkata close out the first set at 15-13.
The Thunderbolts continued to dominate in the second set as well, taking the lead through a fantastic spike at 8-6. However, Calicut gained momentum after winning a crucial Super Point and took a three-point lead at 12-9. Fabulous spikes by Vinith and Ajithlal C helped the Heroes win the second set 15-12 and get on the board, the organisers said in a release.
Rahul lit up the stage with a brilliant spike and helped Kolkata take the lead at 5-4 in the third set. However, the Heroes levelled the scores soon after. Both sides kept winning points in tandem until a fantastic block by Mohamed Riyazudeen and a spike by Ashwal Rai helped Kolkata take the lead at 12-9.
Moments later, the Thunderbolts won a crucial Super Point and eventually took a 2-1 lead in the match. Vignesh Raj D and Ajithlal produced some brilliant spikes as Calicut attained a massive lead at 8-3 in the fourth set. The Heroes rode on the momentum and clinched the fourth set 15-12 to make it two sets all.
The Heroes and the Thunderbolts played out a neck-to-neck contest until 4-4 in the fifth set. However, a superb block by Calicut helped the team gain momentum and take a three-point lead at 7-4. But, Rai kept Kolkata’s hopes alive by helping his team level the scores at 12-12. The Kolkata skipper then finished with a fantastic spike to take his team to a thrilling victory.
The Bengaluru Torpedoes will be up against the Kochi Blue Spikers in the fourth match of the Prime Volleyball League on Tuesday.
