CHENNAI, FEB 17: Trailing by a set, Punjab rallied brilliantly to outwit Andhra Pradesh 21-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-23 to post their first win in the Indian Oil Servo National Volleyball Super League Championship here on Thursday.International Ratanlal, troubled by a knee injury, has not been playing in the Salem Nationals and the second league phase at Payyanur. Punjab was in a piquant situation having surrendered the first set. And if there was one man who could really pull them out it was Ratan Lal. His presence completely changed the course of the match.Mixing caution with aggression, Ratanlal played a tactful game varying his deft placements and smashes as the moment warranted. Roy Joseph, Kamal Singh and Manoj Kumar fared equally well. Within minutes into the second set, Punjab were holding sway with the Andhra defence in disarray.Pradeep Sirangi and Venkat Narayana were an ideal combination in the first but nothing went right for them in the second. Punjab grew in confidence after winning the second and took the initiative in the next. Suraj Prakash varied his passes and was sturdy in the defence too. They led 18-12 and Andhra looked a dejected lot and conceded too many negative points to lose the set.In the fourth, Punjab were closely followed by Andhra and the scores were tied on quite a few occasions. Andhra tried the second line of attack to counter the rival net blocks and were successful for a spell. From 15-19 Andhra narrowed the gap to 22-24. But better coordination, better staying power and consistent Ratanlal ensured Punjab victory at 25-22.
