Railways, Kerala women in last four

Manoj masterminds TN mens’ progress

Superb effort: Kerala’s Aswathi Raveendran comes up with a great retrieve against Haryana.

To say that the Indian Railways women’s team is superior to others would be an understatement.

Comprising nine internationals, the 10-time [defending] champion thrashed Delhi 25-13, 25-15, 25-11 to reach the semifinals of the senior National volleyball championship on Monday.

Kerala women, too, reached the last four in style with a 25-12, 25-16, 25-12 victory over Haryana. This contest was better, with the latter providing a semblance of a fight in the second set.

Delhi appeared to be a novice unit in front of the behemoth.

None of its players looked like taking on the champion team — player for player.

Fine display

In the men’s category, L.M. Manoj, who was brilliant throughout, fittingly did the finishing touches with a calculated spike as Tamil Nadu produced a fine performance to defeat Services 25-20, 23-25, 25-20, 25-20 in the quarterfinals.

The results (quarterfinals): Men: TN bt Services 25-20, 23-25, 25-20, 25-20; Kerala bt AP 25-14, 25-17, 25-12.

Women: Railways bt Delhi 25-13, 25-15, 25-11; Kerala bt Haryana 25-12, 25-16, 25-12 .