RuPay Pro Volleyball League 2019 Team Preview: Chennai Spartans
Chennai Spartans is a Chennai based Volleyball franchise which is all set to participate in the RuPay Pro Volleyball League 2019. Following in the footsteps of Chennai Super Kings, Tamil Thalaivas, the Spartans will be looking to make it big in the league.
Chennai has produced a number of Volleyball players who have gone on to play for the Indian national team and the sport is a fan favourite in the whole state of Tamil Nadu. The tremendous demand for the game and Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium being the only other venue for the league, the team will have incredible home support from the fans.
Let us get to know more about the team and how it stands on paper as the inaugural league gets rolling from 2nd February:
Management
The Spartans sprung into origin after KALS Group and Sri Progressive Projects secured the bid for the franchise. Rajasekaran Sivaprakasam, the Director of KALS is a passionate Volleyball player himself and has helped to launch the brand of Chennai Spikers, who used to play in the now-defunct, Indian Volleyball League.
Attackers
Ruslans Sorokins from Latvia is an outside attacker. Sorokins has about 21 years of playing experience and has represented his nation at the 2012 London Olympics beach volleyball event. His exploits in the beach volleyball helped him make a name for himself in the sports world. He has played for various clubs in Kazakhstan, Slovakia, France, and Belgium.
Naveen Raja Jacob has been a constant member of the Indian national Volleyball team for about six years and will play as an outside hitter for the Spartans. Coming from the stables of the Tirunelveli Sports Hostel, he was groomed under former national coach, Senthil Pandian. His jump serves are known to spread chaos in the opposing court.
Naveen will play from the position of an opposite hitter with his vast international experience coming as an added advantage for the Spartans.
Vibin George is one of the most attacking smashers amongst the Indian Volleyball players. He has been the mainstay of the Indian national team for about six years and also plays club volleyball in Gulf countries. Vibin rose from the age group competitions in Kerala and has gone on to become a gold medalist at the South Asian Games, along with being named as the Best Attacker of the Indian team.
Piraisoodan is an upcoming youngster who plays as an outside attacker. His performances for Southern Railway earned him a spot with the Under-23 India team for the 2015 U-23 Asian Championship in Myanmar. He envisions representing the Senior Team, and the league could be a stepping stone in his quest to don the Indian colours.
Universal
Ashwin Raj features as an opposite for the Spartans. After his accomplishments at age-group competitions in Tamil Nadu, he shortly followed up by making a place for himself in the senior side of the State team. He too hopes to take the RuPay Pro Volleyball league route to secure himself a spot with the Indian national team.
Blocker
Shelton Moses has already represented India at the Asian and Commonwealth Games during his four-year stint and plies his trade with the Indian Overseas Bank team. Having established his base at the Tiruchi Sports Hostel, he rose through the youth and junior India ranks before going on to play for the senior national team. Shelton has been given the responsibility to lead the team in the inaugural season of the RuPay Pro Volleyball League.
Bhagyaraj from Hyderabad leaned towards Volleyball owing to his height. A product of the Sports Authority of India in Bengaluru, he blossomed at SRM University in Chennai during his college days. He is one of the Under-21 players for the Spartans and will be looking to gain experience and exposure from some of the globally experienced players around him.
Rudy Verhoeff from Canada at the Men's World Olympic Qualification Tournament
Rudy Verhoeff from Canada represents Spartans as their International Icon player. He represented Canada during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. Rudy played for British Columbia's Trinity Western Spartans for five years before moving to French Club, Chaumont VB 52 for his first professional assignment.
A bronze medal winner at the 2015 Pan American Games, this lanky athlete will take the role of an opposite player for the Spartans at the RuPay Pro Volleyball League 2019.
Akhin GS, a centre blocker by position on the volleyball court, is considered as one of the most promising prospects in the country to emerge from Kerala. He won the Player of the Tournament award at the 2018 Senior National Volleyball Championship.
The 27-year-old from Thiruvananthapuram feels that the league has already been an eye opener after gaining insights into various aspects of the game.
Setter
An Arjuna awardee from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, Kapil Dev K J plays for the Southern Railways and holds the distinction of representing India in two Asian Games and five Senior Asian Championships. A veteran in the international arena, Kapil‘s presence will inspire the Spartans team to vie for the title.
Hariharan V from Tirupur in Tamil Nadu honed his skills while playing for SRM University during his college days. He broke through into the junior national team to represent India at the Youth Asian Championship. A regular in the Tamil Nadu state team, he plies his trade with the Indian Bank.
Libero
Prabhakaran P is an Integral Coach Factory player and a product of the Sports Hostel. He has been part of the sports promoting, SRM Unversity team and is currently looking to cement his place in the senior national team. He will look to put on the National colour by making a mark at the RuPay Pro Volleyball league.
Reserves
Naresh from Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh is an outside hitter. Representing the Customs, he has represented India at the Youth and Junior Asian Championships. Legendary player-turned-coach, A. Ramana Rao, has played a significant role in shaping Naresh‘s career.
Shikhar Singh is a blocker from Bhilai in Chattisgarh. He played Basketball before focussing his attention to Volleyball. He started at the Steel Plant Volleyball Academy before representing the Indian Junior team in 2018.
Coaching Staff
The head coach of the Chennai Spartans is M. H. Kumara, who is supported by Assistant Coach, Ramesh Mendigiri. Kumara believes that the strength of the Spartans lies in the humongous experience that various players bring with them to the court.