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The second semi-final of the inaugural edition of the RuPay Pro Volleyball League 2019 will see two Southern franchises clash together as the Kochi Blue Spikers will take on Chennai Spartans at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.
Kochi Blue Spikers put on a strong show in front of their home crowd during the Kochi leg, winning four out of their five matches and securing their place in the standings. Chennai Spartans, on the other hand, kept it late and sealed their third-place finish in the league standings after beating Ahmedabad Defenders in the penultimate day of the Chennai leg.
Match Overview
Kochi Blue Spikers started their RuPay Pro Volleyball League season on a bright note, winning their clash with U Mumba Volley 4-1 and continued their fine run on the back of a vociferous home crowd. Their only loss in Kochi came against the eventual league toppers Calicut Heroes, where they were humbled 0-5.
However, the Blue Spikers defeated the Chennai Spartans in their last league match to ensure they finished second in the league. The legendary David Lee has been their key player producing a total of 14 block points from the middle of the court. Experienced campaigners Prabhagaran S and Mohan Ukkrapandian have led the side ably and proven a tough competition to all the other franchises.
Chennai Spartans, on the other hand, had won just one of their three league matches in Kochi and had their work cut out for the home leg. They lost their first match at home against U Mumba Volley but sealed their qualification by defeating Ahmedabad Defenders 4-1.
Chennai's main star has been Canadian international Rudy Verhoeff who is the leading spike points scorer in the league with a tally of 69 points in 5 matches. Naveen Raja Jacob has been a handy contributor for them with 40 points while his serves have fetched him 15 points.
The winner of the second semifinal will take on the undefeated Calicut Heroes side who beat U Mumba Volley in straight sets (3-0) in the first semi-final.
Predicted Starting Six
Kochi Blue Spikers - Mohan Ukkrapandian (c), Prabhagaran S, David Lee, Andrej Patuc, Rohith P, K Praveen Kumar
Chennai Spartans - Shelton Moses (c), Naveen Raja Jacob, Ruslans Soroskins, Rudy Verhoeff, Akhin GS, Hariharan
Telecast details, when and where to watch
Date: 20th February 2019, Wednesday
Start time: 6.50 PM IST
Live Telecast: Sony Six, Sony Ten 3
Live Streaming: Sony LIV (App and Website)
