PVL 2023: Kolkata Thunderbolts ready to clash against the Kochi Blue Spikers

This will be the last game of the Bengaluru leg.

The action in the RuPay Prime Volleyball League Season 2 continues to intensify as the Kolkata Thunderbolts, last year’s champions, lock horns against the Kochi Blue Spikers in their third game of the season, on Sunday, at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru. 

The Thunderbolts will enter into the match with two consecutive wins against the Hyderabad Black Hawks and Ahmedabad Defenders, while the Spikers, will be going into the contest on the back of a loss lost against the Chennai Blitz in their opening match.

With two consecutive supreme performances, the defending Champions Kolkata have already been pegged to be the favourites this year and are currently placed at the top of the table.

Speaking ahead of the match against Kochi Blue Spikers, Kolkata Thunderbolts’ blocker Deepesh Sinha, who has been enjoying his performance and helping his team win crucial points said that he is positive that the team is heading in the right direction. 

“The energy and support we give each other is just fantastic no matter what the score is. We always have each other’s back and together as a team, we can achieve a lot. Our best game is yet to come but I am confident that the team is heading in the right direction," he said.

When asked if the team or the players have any additional pressure of performing better and living up to the fan’s expectations, being the defending champions, the blocker said, “It feels great to be the defending champions but at the same time, there is no added pressure to it on the team and the players. We are just playing our game and performing to our best because of which the results are going in our favour."

“We are taking it game by game and hopefully, we will go all the way and lift the trophy this season as well. We want to give our 100% every time we are on the court,” he added. 

On the other hand, Vipul Kumar, who is leading the Kochi Blue Spikers troops, spoke ahead of the match and said that his team will look to rectify the mistakes they made in the previous season.

“We are looking forward to this game. In our first game, we made some mistakes that cost us the game, but we have learned from them and will use it to improve our game.

“We know that Kolkata Thunderbolts are coming on the back of two successive wins and will try and stop their two key players - Ashwal and Vinit. We have worked on different strategies which we will execute during the game and hopefully come victorious," he added.

The Kochi captain also spoke on how impressive Jibin Sebastian has been and added that he could be the key player for the Spikers this season. “There is a lot of potential in Jibin. He has a lot to offer and I am sure with each game passing, he will only become a better player.” 

Where to watch:

The RuPay Prime Volleyball League powered by A23 will be telecast LIVE on Sony Sports Ten 1 (English), Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 (Tamil & Telugu) & Sony Sports Ten 2 (Malayalam) channels in India and will be streamed on Volleyball World TV outside the Indian subcontinent, starting February 4, Saturday.