Last season’s semi-finalists Hyderabad Black Hawks began their Season 2 of the RuPay Prime Volleyball League Powered by A23 campaign with an impressive 3-2 win (13-15, 15-9, 15-14, 15-11, 10-15) against Ahmedabad Defenders.

The Black Hawks, led by Guru Prasanth, had a slow start to the new season, losing the first set 13-15. But as the game progressed, the team from Telangana picked the pace to win the next three sets, making the final set a dead rubber.

Interestingly enough, if not for the unforced errors, the Black Hawks would have sealed the first set as well, as Ahmedabad were trailing for most part of the first half.

The Muthusamy Appavu-led side, however, made a brilliant comeback by the first timeout, but little did they know what was in the offering.

With that being said, here we look at the top three moments from Match 3 of the 2023 RuPay Prime Volleyball League Powered by A23.

Guru Prasanth leading from the front

Hyderabad Black Hawks captain Guru Prasanth was in the thick of things right from the beginning. The lanky youngster made some crucial blocks and earned his team some important points, but all of it turned out to be a mere one-man show in the first set.

The captain gathered an impressive 15 attack points and one from the block, taking his tally to 16 points from the fixture - the most by any player involved in the game across both teams.

Service a serious issue for both teams

While Hyderabad’s teamplay was commendable, their service remained a serious problem in the opening part of the game. Last season’s semi-finalists made as many as eight errors from the launch throughout the game. The only exception, however, was Ashamatullah, who managed to earn three points from 12 serves.

On the other hand, Ahmedabad Defenders were no better. The Muthusamy Appavu-led team struggled to serve, especially in the third set, making 13 errors throughout the course of the game. The biggest falterer of all was Danial Moatazedi, who made four errors from the launch while earning a solitary point from his seven attempts.

Black Hawks make a statement

Despite starting on the back foot, Hyderabad Black Hawks showed they are no pushovers. The team made nine blocks and forced their opponents to make 17 errors.

In what could be termed as a sheer team effort, as many as four players accounted for more than five points, including Prasanth, Trent O’Dea, Ashamatullah and John Joseph. Overall, a total of eight players had at least two points in their bank.

Hyderabad Black Hawks oozed confidence, especially after winning the third set which was, in fact, the closest battle the two teams fought. With momentum by their side, they gave Ahmedabad Defenders little to no space to get back into the game in the fourth set. While they did let the fifth set slip, the game was already in the bag.