Honour to play in front of such passionate fans: Rudy

This was after certain enthusiasts screamed their heads off for the new fan favourite. Just as Spartans’ Rudy neared the top tier of the arena, he outstretched his arms to celebrate his side’s triumph with the yellow brigade. The Canadian, who wore a grin on his face, then clicked a groupfie with hundreds of supporters in the background. Courtesy of this, the day, which kick-started on a twitchy note, had its perfect ending.

“It’s been an honour to play in front of such passionate crowds. A dream of mine is to provide happiness to someone by doing what I love, playing volleyball. If I can make them happy, it would be fantastic,” said Rudy in an exclusive chat with DT Next. The decibel levels at the stadium kept rocketing as the 29-year-old consistently chipped in with points against Ahmedabad. Every time he applied the finishing touches, chants of ‘Rudy Rudy Rudy’ echoed around. “I have played in front of 10,000+ fans before. But, I have got to say Indians are really passionate about sports. The only other countries where you will see passion like this are Brazil and Poland,” he added.

After Sunday’s scintillating display, Rudy has become a statistician’s delight. The Olympian is now the highest scorer in PVL, with 82 points under his belt. He tops three of the six performance charts, thanks to his three successive 20-pointers. When asked about his form during the presser, he explained, “I got the same number of points (20) in the previous two games, but ended up losing. I did the same (on Sunday) and we defeated Defenders. Volleyball is the ultimate team sport. It doesn’t matter how many (points) an individual scores, it’s about clicking as a unit.”

Legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar used to make telling contributions during his days and Spartans coach MH Kumara felt Rudy is doing a similar job for his team. And rightly so, he sports number 10 on the back of his jersey. “He is the Tendulkar of our side. He has been carrying us by taking crucial points. But, all other members came good at the right time too. He is one of the youngest foreign players and that’s why we decided to pick him at the draft,” said Kumara.