Hyderabad:For Chennai Blitz captain Mohan Ukkrapandian, performing to the best of their potential is the only mantra going into the tournament as the team gears up to step on the court in the first season of the Prime Volleyball League at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium here.
Chennai Blitz will face Ahmedabad Defenders on 6th February and the skipper, with the likes of GS Akhin and Naveen Raja Jacob, is banking on the experience of the players to sail them through.
When Etv Bharat asked about the composition of the team during a virtual press conference, Ukkrapandian, said, "It's shaping up well and we are happy. We have a great understanding among us. The experience speaks here. We don't need to tell an individual to do things because of the experience that they have. Myself, Naveen among others have played for India as well. We have a great connection and it's good for us as a team."
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"Everyone is saying that Chennai team is very good, it because of that (experience). We can up the ante even if our performance goes down at some point. Since some of us have played for the Tamil Nadu and the Indian national side, it will be very helpful," he said.
While Ukkrapandian concedes that the team will have a simple plain strategy of putting their best foot forward every time they step on the court, he also emphasised the need to take each match as it comes, a strategy also reiterated by his Bengaluru Torpedoes counterpart Ranjit Singh.
"We have to give our best, that's the only strategy. We are going to take match by match and strategise according to that," the Chennai captain said.
On their first match against Kochi Blue Spikers, Singh, captain of the Bengaluru team said their plan is to strategise against one team at a time and not the tournament as a whole. While the Chennai team is looking to rely on the experience of its players, Bengaluru Torpedoes is looking to tap its bench strength.