Prime Volleyball League 2024: Calicut Heroes, Mumbai Meteors win; Ahmedabad Defenders winless in Super 5s stage

Mumbai Meteors came back from two sets down to beat the Defenders.

Defending champions Ahmedabad Defenders’ poor run in the Super 5s stage of the Prime Volleyball League 2024 continued as they went down to Mumbai Meteors for a second straight defeat. Elsewhere, Calicut Heroes returned to winning ways with a victory over Bengaluru Torpedoes, who are second from bottom in the Super 5s standings. Calicut climbed to second place with their win.

Calicut Heroes survive Bengaluru Torpedoes’ scare

Calicut Heroes returned to winning ways in the Super 5s stage of the Prime Volleyball League 2024, 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, Chennai on Thursday. Jerome Vinith was named the Player of the Match.

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’s fiery spikes 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 base line. 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 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.

Mumbai Meteors stun Ahmedabad Defenders from two sets down

Mumbai Meteors edged out the Ahmedabad Defenders in a five-set thriller in the Super 5s stage of the Prime Volleyball League, picking up an 15-8, 13-15, 7-15, 16-14, 15-13 win at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai on Thursday. Amit Gulia was named the Player of the Match.

Shikhar Singh was at the heart of Ahmedabad’s defence, justifying his selection in starting line-up over veteran Manoj. Amit and Shubham started attacking from outside lines to take Shikhar out of equation. Unforced errors from Ahmedabad allow the Meteors to gain momentum. Ahmedabad’s risky move of substituting Muthu proved costly, and Mumbai took an early lead.

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Muthusamy and Angaumuthu’s returns to court provided Ahmedabad attacking flair. Amit and Shubham tested Ahmedabad’s defence with spicy attacks. Shon T John began helping Ahmedabad gain momentum with his all-round display, and the Defenders opened the doors for a comeback. Shameem kept Mumbai’s attacks going from the middle, but Shon T kept Ahmedabad’s spirits high and the Defenders took a 2-1 lead.

Shikhar and Ilya shackled Mumbai attackers but Amit’s incessant attacks kept the Meteors in the hunt. A couple of errors from Ahmedabad favoured Mumbai, pushing the game to the fifth set. Amit started finding ways around tall blockers, helping Mumbai. Angamuthu’s spikes, and Max Senica’s super serve put pressure on the Meteors, but Aditya’s monster block on Shon T helped Mumbai clinch a thrilling win.

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