Danial Moatazedi, for his dazzling performance against Calicut Heroes during Ahmedabad Defenders’ 3-2 (15-13, 13-15, 15-13, 13-15, 15-11) win, was rightly adjudged as the RuPay Player of the Match award on Monday, February 20.

The 31-year-old veteran middle blocker finished the match as the joint-highest top-scorer with 14 points alongside Calicut’s Jose Sandoval. A deep dive of the Iranian’s performances explains how effective he was for the team across various positions.

To begin with, 12 of his 14 points were tallied from attack alone and two were gathered from blocks. Interestingly enough, Moatazedi attempted two blocks throughout the game and was successful in each one of them, taking his efficiency to 100 percent in the department. Even in attack, he was responsible for a solitary error.

If one needs to point out, the opening and the final sets of the match were the most fruitful ones for the Iranian. In the first round alone, he tallied four points, all of which came in the attack. Three were obtained via spikes and the other through a cheeky drop.

The final set saw Moatazedi accumulate an impressive five points. This time around, however, only three came in the attack while two were block points. This goes on to show that despite playing a game just 24 hours prior, the 31-year-old managed to get into his groove quickly against arguably one of the best teams in the competition.

It’s also pertinent to note that as Danial Moatazedi’s influence grew during the game, so did Ahmedabad’s confidence.