LAHORE: Army, Navy, Wapda and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) advanced to the next round of the 48th National Senior Men’s Volleyball Championship after winning their respective matches at the Wapda Sports Complex here on Wednesday.

In the most thrilling encounter, Army faced tough opposition from Police in a five-setter before eventually prevailing 25-22, 25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 25-20.

Packed with drama, Police staged a comeback after losing the first two sets by a narrow margin and 3-9 down in the third. They won the third set before restoring parity by claiming the fourth.

But Army eventually won with Imran, Amjad, Waseem, Usman and Irfan serving well in the deciding fifth set. For Police, Kashif, Rauf, Irfan and Sajid performed well.

Navy, meanwhile, had an easier outing as they outclassed Sindh in straight sets 25-12, 25-5, 25-7. International Asif was their game planner who was ably supported by other internationals Abuzr and Shuja.

There were straightforward wins for Wapda and PAF too. WAPDA thrashed Fata 25-10, 25-10, 25-13 while PAF toppled Khyber Pakhtunwa 25-16, 25-17, 25-16.

Thursday’s fixtures: Balochistan v Wapda (11am), Army v Punjab (12pm), PAF v Fata (3pm), Navy v Police (2pm).

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play