Chennai: Karnataka men and Kerala women emerged winners in the 67th Senior National Volleyball Championship at Nehru indoor stadium here Thursday.
While Kerala registered a five-set thrilling victory 3-2 ((20-25, 25-17, 17-25, 25-19, 15-8) against Railways, breaking their streak of victories, Karnataka men surprised the local favorites Tamilnadu, defeating them 3-1 (21-25, 36-34, 25-18, 25-14), to notch up their first ever title win in the tournament.
TN bagged the opening set in front of a vociferous crowd. The title-winner pegged back in the second and there was no stopping it after that. The second set was hard-fought, with Karnataka holding its nerve in crunch situations. After a tiring period, the host didn’t have the energy and game to mount a comeback and succumbed. Karnataka took the third set with a scoreline of 25 -18 and it made light work in the fourth, winning it 25-14.
In the women’s final, Railways’ dominance at the national level was brought to a halt by Kerala. The latter won 3-2 After three sets, Railways was on course for an 11th consecutive title, but Kerala had other ideas. The last time the southern State won the trophy was way back in 2007.
Results: Final: Men: Karnataka beat Tamil Nadu Women: Kerala beat Railways 3-2 (20-25, 25-17, 17-25, 25-19, 15-8)