Dubai: Big Mart Dubai tamed Crossings International in straight sets in the final of the Newray Udayakumar Memorial Ramadan Volleyball Tournament that concluded at the Salah Al Deen Indoor Hall late on Thursday.
Unbeaten during the preliminary rounds of the competition, Big Mart Dubai planned their strategy well to win 25-20, 25-21 and 27-25 in the best-of-five sets final held before a large crowd.
Leading the charge for Big Mart Dubai was captain Hamed Tariverdi, from Iran, as he galvanised his limited resources against a sharp and focused opponent. Big Mart Dubai always held the edge in the first two sets, but the injection of young setter Mohammad Sabith turned the tide for Crossings International in the third. However, Big Mart Dubai always seemed to have that extra firepower to outplay Crossings International as they went on to win a tight third set to be crowned champions.
“We knew we were up against a tough team. We had played them in the preliminary rounds and hence we were aware of their shortcomings. We concentrated on these and stuck to our attacking style of volleyball,” Big Mart’s captain Tariverdi told Gulf News.
He stressed that there are no stars in the Big Mart Dubai team. “All of them are stars. We have been together for some time now and we have come to know each other well. This has helped us tremendously and this bond can only get better. With this one important element, I feel we can beat any team now,” he added.
It was Crossings International making a strong start to the first set, but Big Mart Dubai eased ahead to an 11-7 lead. Crossings International cut down the lead to 11-13 only to see their opponents bank on some fine display at the net — including a one-footed retrieval from skipper Tariverdi — to win the set 25-20.
Crossings International once again led early in the second set only to see a couple of spikes from Anoop D’Costa and good blocking at the net from Ashwel Ray hand over the lead to Big Mart Dubai at 13-8. They kept up the pressure and D’Costa served out the set 25-21.
In the third set, the entry of young Sabith changed things for Crossings International as they led in the first half. But Big Mart Dubai managed to draw level at 10-10 and then took the lead for the first time at 12-11. From then on, the lead changed hands constantly till a D’Costa spike caught the Crossings International defence off-guard and then Bahak Amiti served into Zamurud’s body to win the set and match 27-25.
Earlier, a UAE selection team defeated Dubai Duty Free 15-11, 15-10 in a women’s exhibition match before the final. Ahmad Hamza, Senior Volleyball Team Manager at Al Shabab, presented the winner’s trophy and cash prizes along with Mustafa Mullikot, Managing Director, Al Shiraz Group after the final.
Six teams, including Only Fresh Dubai, Dubai Duty Free, Esito Blasters and Lebanese Youth Sports, participated in this tournament that was held in memory of Arjuna Awardee, Udaya Kumar. The teams played each other to decide the best four going through to the semi-finals.
