61st Senior National Volleyball Championship: 2012 runners-up Uttarakhand sweat, Railway women impress

Last year’s runners up Uttarakhand returned to winning ways after their opening match defeat to Karnataka, carving out a hard-fought 25-17, 22-25, 19-25, 25-14, 16-14 win over pugnacious Punjab in a Group B men’s league tie at the 61st National volleyball championship at the Sawai Man Singh Indoor Stadium in Jaipur.

Uttarakhand, which struggled to show the same form that took them to the semifinals of the 2012 Senior Nationals, seemed to be feeling the injured-induced absence of two of its key players – Y. Subba Rao and Vinod Negi.

They were in for a tough ride against a Punjab side which pushed them to dig deep into their reserves.

Uttarakhand clinched the openine set at 25-17 before Punjab mounted a tremendous comeback not only leveling things winning the second set 25-22, but also seized the advantage bagging the third set 25-19.

Down by one set to two, the championship was on the verge of witnessing a major upset – last year’s runners-up on the cusp of being shown the exit door.

But Uttarakhand, who won the senior national title only once in 2002, pulled up their socks and brought things to an even kneel, winning the fourth set 25-14.

The 2009 finalist’s resurgence fully came to the fore in the decider which they won 16-14.

Uttarakhand owe their stupendous win to Guru Chand Singh, Mandeep Singh, S.A. Rahul and Rathish Kumar – all of whom exhibited robust blocks and smashes.

In the women’s section, defending champion Railways and runners-up Kerala maintained their winning run, posting facile wins.

27-times champions Railways pipped Tamil Nadu 25-10, 25-13, 25-20 in a Group A match, while Kerala eased past Himachal Pradesh 25-17, 25-15, 25-12.

Results (League Matches):

Men: Group B: Uttarakhand bt Punjab 25-17, 22-25, 19-25, 25-14, 16-14; Services bt Karnataka 25-20, 25-16, 27-25. Group C: Jharkhand bt Jammu and Kashmir 25-21, 25-23, 25-13; Andhra Pradesh bt Chhattisgarh 25-14, 21-25, 25-21 37-35. Group D: Uttar Pradesh bt Gujarat 24-26, 22-25, 25-20, 25-12, 15-10. Group E: Rajasthan bt Bihar 25-18, 29-27, 25-16. Group F: Delhi bt Madhya Pradesh 25-16, 25-12, 25-20; Himachal Pradesh bt West Bengal 20-25, 25-17, 19-25, 25-23, 15-7.

Women: Group A: Railways bt Tamil Nadu 25-10, 25-13, 25-20; Andhra Pradesh bt Karnataka 25-16, 25-11, 25-23. Group B: Uttar Pradesh bt West Bengal 25-27, 25-14, 25-19, 25-22; Kerala bt Himachal Pradesh 25-17, 25-15, 25-12. Group C: Gujarat bt Maharashtra 25-22, 25-21, 25-12. Group F: Delhi bt Chhattisgarh 25-14, 25-19, 25-10.