Kochi: Bengaluru Torpedoes pulled off a thrilling 15-10, 10-15, 15-13, 10-15 win over defending champions Kolkata Thunderbolts to enter the final of the Prime Volleyball League (PVL) at the Regional Sports Centre, here on Friday.
Bengaluru went big right from the word go but handed over a couple of early freebies to Kolkata.
Ibin Jose started making an impact for Bengaluru, while skipper Ashwal Rai continued his sensational form for Kolkata.
The neck-and-neck battle saw Bengaluru inch ahead with Tsvetelin Tsvetanov and skipper Pankaj Sharma's attacks. Janshad kept setting up Ashwal to keep Kolkata closer to the opposition. But Pankaj's dominant show from the service line troubled Kolkata's defence and Bengaluru took control.
Rahul put a block on Pankaj and made a thunderous super serve to make his presence felt. His super show gave confidence to Vinit Kumar and Ashwal to make strong spikes and Kolkata found an opening. Service errors from Bengaluru did not help their cause and Kolakata levelled the playing field.
Rahul kept finding ways to tackle Bengaluru's three-man block line. But a crucial review call from head coach David Lee gave Bengaluru an important point upon which they built their momentum to regain control.
Bengaluru defence was on point when Mujeeb, Vyshak, and Abalooch put on a three-man block on Rahul's spike. Midhun's clever retrieval of the ball at a crucial moment further edged Bengaluru ahead as Kolkata were blown away by Bengaluru defence. Pankaj's power-packed performance ended Kolkata's resistance and Bengaluru booked a spot in the final.
Pankaj Sharma was named the player of the match.
Ahmedabad Defenders will be up against Calicut Heroes in the second semifinal on Saturday (7 pm).
(With inputs from PVL Media)