Chennai Blitz’s hopes of making it to the knockout stage of RuPay Prime Volleyball League Powered by A23 Season 2 ended after a 0-5 (11-15, 13-15, 10-15, 9-15, 12-15) loss to Ahmedabad Defenders in match 17.

After a promising start to the contest, Reuben Wolochin’s side failed to sustain their early winning momentum. And that script would repeat in each and every set.

Ahmedabad effectively exploited Chennai’s weaknesses to strengthen their position in the standings. Here’s how it felt

Fatigue got the better of Chennai Blitz?

It was Chennai Blitz’s second match in as many days and it looked like fatigue seemed imminent. All that was made evident in the first two sets as their defence struggled to cope with the growing pressure of the match. By the end of the second set, Chennai had made just ONE block. To put things into perspective, Ahmedabad Defenders were on 10.

Teamwork is dreamwork

Ahmedabad Defenders' win over Chennai Blitz was all about teamwork. The Gujarat-based team were dominant across all departments; be it attacking the Chennai defence with thundering spikes or blocking Akhin GS’ attempts. It also seemed like Chennai were largely reliant on Akhin’s return and this can be understood by the fact that the towering middle blocker was once again his team’s highest point scorer.

Ahmedabad’s gradual success

Despite being last season’s runners-up, Ahmedabad Defenders appear to be outsiders to make the final this season, which is being currently dominated by Calicut Heroes and Kolkata Thunderbolts. Interestingly enough, they started the ongoing campaign with a 2-3 defeat to Hyderabad Black Hawks. But there has been no looking back since. In their last three outings, they have beaten Bengaluru Torpedoes (3-2), Mumbai Meteors (4-1) and Chennai Blitz (5-0) to sail to the top of the standings owing to a bonus point.