He was an emperor among commoners. He was a leader, literally and figuratively, of all the teams he was part of. He had vision, commonsense and, most importantly, a burning desire to win. V. Ravikanth Reddy was a volleyball player like no other in his generation. The Andhra Pradesh star was the engine as well as inspiration of the senior Indian team from 1995 to 2005.

Ravikanth, who was born in a family of volleyball players, was in the city recently as a member of Railways’ contingent at the 59th senior national championship. He has an electric presence even today. Those who have seen him play haven’t forgotten what a special player he was.

A. Chandrasekar, a former Indian Bank player, said he has seen few with Ravikanth’s leadership qualities and killer instinct. “I was a team-mate of Ravikanth in junior Indian teams in the early 90s. He had the ability to lead from the front even as a teenager. He hated losing. He was, no doubt, supremely talented. But for me, he stood out for his desire to win and mental strength,” he added.

Ravi said his early inspiration was the late Abdul Basith. “I used to train regularly with Basith bhai. He would ask my team to beat his by giving us a 14-point advantage. Watching him play was a lesson in itself,” the South Central Railway officer added.

“I enjoyed the responsibilities of a setter, who is the most important member in a volleyball team. He controls play and his team is only as good as his performance. He must be aware of not only his team’s strength, but also his opponents’. A setter must know what is happening on the court all the time,” the Arjuna awardee added.

Junior Indian team coach M.H. Kumara said he hadn’t seen any setter dictate play like Ravikanth did during his peak. “His brain would always be ticking about the various possibilities of attacks. I used to wonder whether he also had eyes on the back of his head. Ravikanth would first observe the positions of blockers on the other side before releasing the second pass. He would take opponents by surprise with his smashes,” he added.

It was in Chennai where Ravikanth’s journey with the senior Indian team started. “I will never forget the SAF Games held here in 1995. The atmosphere in volleyball matches was terrific. To cap it all, India won the gold on my debut. Another highlight of my career was India’s qualification for the world junior championship in the early 90s. We had done so after a gap of 22 years,” he said.

Ravikanth, who proved his versatality by winning a national beach volleyball title, played in Lebanese professional league for four years during his peak. “Besides earning decent money, I learned a lot on various aspects of the game. Tactically, I was a better player after the Lebanese stint,” he added.

Amir Singh, an Arjuna awardee and Ravikanth’s contemporary, paid the ultimate tribute to the Andhra Pradesh colossus. “He was a world-class setter. I had played in the highly competitive Qatar professional league for eight years and I know Ravi’s worth. I’m lucky to have played alongside him. He was a sight to behold in full flight,” the Haryanvi said.