Home \u00bb Sports \u00bb Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 win inaugural Guardians Trophy 2026<\/p>\n
Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 were crowned champions of the inaugural Guardians Trophy 2026 after defeating hosts Goa Guardians U21 3-1 in the final at the Don Bosco Oratory, Panjim, on August 16.<\/p>\n
The tournament, held over three days, featured the under-21 squads of all 10 Prime Volleyball League franchises competing for the first Guardians Trophy title.<\/p>\n
Following 20 group-stage matches and two semifinals, Goa Guardians U21 and Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 emerged as finalists. Goa Guardians secured their place in the final by narrowly defeating Mumbai Meteors Youth 3-2 in a five-set semifinal. Mumbai won the opening set 16-14, but Goa responded with 15-12 and 15-10 victories in the next two sets. Mumbai forced a deciding fifth set with a 15-12 win in the fourth, but Goa prevailed 15-10 to reach the final.<\/p>\n
In the other semifinal, Hyderabad Black Hawks produced a dominant performance against Ahmedabad Defenders U21, winning 3-0 in straight sets. Hyderabad edged the first set 16-14, took the second 15-9, and secured the third 16-14 to advance to the championship match.<\/p>\n
The final featured Goa Guardians, unbeaten throughout the group stage, against Hyderabad Black Hawks, who entered on the back of a strong semifinal win. Hyderabad began strongly, taking the first set 16-7. Goa, supported by the home crowd, levelled the match with a 15-11 win in the second set. The third set was closely contested, but Hyderabad won 16-14 to move within one set of the title. Black Hawks then secured the championship with a 15-8 win in the fourth set, completing a 3-1 victory.<\/p>\n
Final score: Goa Guardians U21 1-3 Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 (7-16, 15-11, 14-16, 8-15).<\/p>\n
Individual awards were presented as follows: Most Valuable Player of the Tournament \u2013 Sarthak (Hyderabad); Best Server \u2013 Sarthak (Hyderabad); Best Opposite \u2013 Sarthak (Hyderabad); Best Attacker \u2013 Deepak (Hyderabad); Best Blocker \u2013 Suraj (Goa); Best Setter \u2013 Arjun (Goa); Best Libero \u2013 Yogesh (Goa).<\/p>\n
The Guardians Trophy was established by Goa Guardians to provide India\u2019s emerging volleyball players with a competitive franchise-level platform. The tournament featured under-21 teams from all Prime Volleyball League franchises, enabling young players to represent their respective teams and compete at a high level.<\/p>\n
The Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 team received prize money of INR 120,000, while the runners-up, Goa Guardians U21, were awarded INR 60,000.<\/p>\n
This story is written by TNM Bureau with inputs from ANI. The News Mill is a Guwahati-based digital media with focus on content from across Northeast India and beyond. We can be reached through [email\u00a0protected]<\/p>\n