"PVL will change India's volleyball circuit" -Jerome Vinith of Calicut Heroes

Jerome Vinith will turn out for Calicut Heroes in the inaugural RuPay Prime Volleyball League (PVL), which begins in Kochi on February 5. The Indian ace expects the league to help unearth talented players.

"The PVL will definitely help in unearthing many talented players in India. I feel the tournament will change the volleyball circuit in India. The league will build a fan base for volleyball in our country, which is the most important thing for the growth of any sport, which will also help the players financially," Vinith said.

Seven franchises will feature in the inaugural edition.

"The passion for volleyball in Calicut is really high and therefore I am very excited to play for Calicut Heroes in PVL 2022. Calicut volleyball fans know their sport and are very supportive not just towards the sport but also the team and us players, which is why I am always happy to play any tournament in Calicut," he added.

Jerome Vinith's volleyball journey

Vinith hails from a farming family and took up the sport only in college.

"I only started playing volleyball in my college days, I didn't play the sport while in my school at all. I started playing the sport properly when I went to university. A coach in my college motivated me to play volleyball at a high level and he also pushed me to join SRM University in 2011. I learned all the techniques of volleyball properly at my university," the 29-year-old stated.

Vinith is an integral part of the national team.

"I played in the 2014 Asia Cup where we won silver. I have played two Asian Games. I was captain of the Indian team which won gold at the 2019 South Asian Games. I was also part of the gold medal-winning team at the South Asian Games in 2016," he concluded.