Hyderabad, Feb 22 () As the Hyderabad leg of the second season of the Prime Volleyball League came to a close, Indian ace shuttler Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, who came to the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium to watch every match in the city, praised the level of the volleyball being played in the tournament.
The volleyball league action will now shift to Kochi from Friday, with Calicut Heroes facing off against Chennai Blitz in the first game of the season.
On Tuesday, Hyderabad Black Hawks picked their third win in a row, defeating Bengaluru Torpedoes in a five-set thriller. Several stars from the city came to witness the thrilling volleyball action including the ‘Arjun Reddy’ actor and the co-owner of Hyderabad Black Hawks Vijay Deverakonda.
Satwik, who was among the stars present to witness the match, talked about his love for the sport after the match. “In a way, I am related to the sport. My dad was a Volleyball player. I have always tried to incorporate the spirit of the game in my training sessions as well. I used to see how high these players would jump and the passion with which they win a point. I have tried inculcating all this whenever I am practicing and it has given me a lot of confidence.”
The 23-year-old shuttler, who along with his partner, Chirag Shetty, is the first men’s doubles pair from India to be ranked inside the top 10 of the BWF World Ranking, with a career-high ranking of 5, said that he is impressed with the performance of players in the Prime Volleyball League.
“It was an amazing week. I was here for every match. The atmosphere in the stadium was always so electrifying. It was lovely to see the fans enjoying watching their favourite team and players live in action,” the Andhra Pradesh-born athlete said.
“I was definitely impressed by SV Guru Prashanth of Hyderabad Black Hawks. The way he hits his smashes is a pure joy to watch. I have a soft corner for the Hyderabad franchise. I will support them whoever they are playing against. Beside this, there are also other players who I like watching play including Calicut Heroes’ Jerome Vinith and Kolkata Thunderbolts’ captain Ashwal Rai,” he added.
The shuttler also said that the league has provided a platform for the growth of volleyball in the country and said that other sports will take a learning from how this tournament has been conducted. “The league has provided a tremendous platform the players to showcase their skill and potential on a global level. The way the league has expanded just proves that the sport has a bright future going forward. I am sure that other sports league will take learning from this and give an opportunity and a platform for the future generation players,” he said.
cs