Chennai, (Samajweekly) Calicut Heroes returned to winning ways in the Super 5s stage of the third season of Prime Volleyball League, defeating the Bengaluru Torpedoes 18-16, 16-14, 8-15, 11-15, 15-10 in an action-packed encounter at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, here on Thursday.
Back to his best form, Danial became central to Calicut’s attacks. Jishnu’s monster block on Chirag Yadav helped Bengaluru to keep the scores level. Jerome Vinith, who was later named the Player of the Match, unleashed some fiery spikes that gave Calicut momentum while Ibin’s solid attacks kept the Torpedoes at a close distance. A sensational review call gave Calicut a crucial point to inch ahead.
Sensational Sethu returned to his best with aggressive serves and built pressure from the baseline. Calicut gave away freebies with unforced errors, shifting the momentum Bengaluru’s way. Calicut’s super point win closed the gap before Jerome’s attacks again edged Calicut ahead. Key errors in attack and Danial’s explosive tap gave Calicut control of the game.
Jishnu’s consecutive blocks left Calicut attackers shackled. Heptinstall kept attacking from Zone 2 as the Torpedoes opened the doors for a comeback. Sethu’s dominance with serves continued while Paulo’s sensational passing kept Calicut guessing the source of Bengaluru’s attack. A wayward serve from Calicut helped the Torpedoes push the match to the fifth set.
Jerome started firing again in the final set, while Ukkrapandian smashed an ace serve to edge Calicut ahead. Substitute Ashok Bishnoi’s magical play from the service line rattled the Torpedoes defence. Coach David Lee called for a Super Point as a last-ditch effort to get back, but an error from Heptinstall proved costly, leading Calicut to an important win.
