Get set for a beach battle in Vizag!

It's show time in Vizag! Come March 28 and the quiet beaches of the city will be transformed into a colourful battlefield. Slather on some sunscreen and get set to witness a gala sports extravaganza - the 14th National Beach Volleyball Championship will have more than 100 teams (with two players each) from across the country - 60 men and 40 women - competing for the top honours!
While this mega sporting championship only reiterates the fact that Vizag is fast becoming the destination for competitive beach volleyball, truth is that the virgin beaches of the City of Destiny have long been perfect hotspots for lovers of the game for the last few decades.It's a common sight to see young beach volleyball enthusiasts spiking the volleyball, diving into the sands and playing friendly matches all through the year. But with an increasing number of Vizagites taking up the sport professionally, the stakes are getting higher than ever.
And it is with the aim to take beach volleyball to the next level and to bring recognition to this sport nationally that the Visakhapatnam District Volleyball Association has proudly announced the 14th Senior National beach Volleyball championship for Men and Women at the Ramakrishna Beach Sports complex.
Around eight teams will represent Andhra Pradesh - five men's teams and three women's teams. Of the five teams, three teams will represent Vizag. Srinivas Rao, GVMC sports authority member, says, "We are happy to announce that this time Vizag is staging a national sports event on such a big scale and will also have three teams representing the city. Around 200 participants from across the country will be in the Vizag. Practise sessions will start at the Beach Sports Complex from March 24 onwards. And the main events will kick-start on March 28."
Elaborating on the format, he adds, "We are going to have day and night matches. The games will start at 8 am every day and end around 11 pm."
At present, players representing the Vizag team are busy participating in the ongoing National Championship that is being held in Chennai. Ramakrishna Raju, Sathish B, Santhosh Varma and Krishnam Raju form the men's teams from Vizag while Sreelatha and Maheshwari are part of the women's team. Talking about the exciting tournament, Sreelatha, a 26-year-old East Coast railway employee from Vizag, who has won many National awards in beach volleyball, says, "It's an amazing opportunity to be a part of the 14th National Beach Volleyball Championship. And being a Vizagite, I feel extra pressure to bring laurels to our city by winning the cup. I have an experience of five years in this sport, so, I'm confident of my form."
Echoing Sreelatha's positive spirit is 26-year-old Krishnam Raju. "Right now, since we are participating in the national championship in Chennai, it's helping us train for the upcoming matches in Vizag. Since 2010, I have been participating in many international beach volley championships across the world. But when I heard that such a big championship is going to be held in Vizag, I was overwhelmed. I'm definitely going to give the tournament a 100% to showcase my beach volleyball skills on the home grounds and bring the cup home."
With this tournament, the Visakhapatnam District Volleyball Association (VDVA) not only plans to make the city the hub for the sport, but also draw more tourists to the already popular destination. GVV Prasad Raju, secretary of the Association, says, "Vizag is already a hot tourist hub. By launching the National Beach Volleyball Tournament, we want to take it to the next level. Every year, the championship takes place in Chennai, but we want to make mana the city the hub for the sport now. Next year, we want to make it an international tournament."
Talking about the schedule for the coming few days, PGVR Naidu, president of the VDVA, says "All the players will be in Vizag by March 23. The practice sessions will commence on March 24. The opening ceremony will take place on March 28, after which day and night matches will kick-off. Two league matches will be held, where 20 teams from different states will participate per day. Whoever wins in the league matches gets selected for the knock-out matches that will be held on March 30 and finally on March 31, the finals will be held to decide the winners of the Championship."
Ever since the tournament was announced, Vizagites are an excited lot. Rambabu, a member of the Walker's Club Association, says "We are glad that finally Vizag is opening up to some national sporting events, apart from cricket. During my morning walks, I see young kids playing beach volleyball every day. After my walk from YMCA to RK Beach, I usually join these youngsters for a game before heading home. Now, with the sport being played competitively, I'm sure it will be a delight to watch the national players in action. The Beach Road will definitely be swamped with enthusiastic onlookers who will want to take autographs and pictures of the national players. We are looking forward to the event."
The ladies in Vizag are thrilled too, considering around 40 women's teams are participating. Rashmi Choubey, a Hindi literature student from Andhra University, says "I've been living in this city for five years, but I never had the opportunity to watch a competitive beach volleyball tournament that will have women participating too. It will definitely be a heartening sight to see female sportspersons in action. My friends and I are going to catch all the matches live and cheer on all the female participants, especially those who are representing Team Vizag."