Ahmedabad: Diya Chitale’s sweeping victory over Ananya Chande in the last match of the tie helped Dabang Delhi TTC beat Kolkata ThunderBlades in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6 here on Friday. Earlier, reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers beat PBG Pune Jaguars, courtesy of solid displays from power couple Harmeet Desai and Krittwika Sinha Roy.
Delhi’s win over Kolkata saw them surge to the top of the table, while Goa moved to second after their success.
Staged under the aegis of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) and promoted by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani, UTT continues to grow as a premier professional league, and all ties will be broadcast live on Star Sports Khel and Star Sports 2 Tamil, and streamed on JioHotstar.
Dabang Delhi TTC and Kolkata ThunderBlades opened with a clash of two standout youngsters, and it was Ankur Bhattacharjee who extended his perfect run in UTT Season 6.
The 18-year-old edged out Singapore’s Izaac Quek 2-1 in a thriller, clinching the decider on Golden Point after the two split the opening games. In the next match, Puerto Rico’s Adriana Diaz looked in top form, sealing her singles win 2-1 over Maria Xiao, and putting Kolkata ThunderBlades in early control.
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Maria Xiao struck back for Delhi in the mixed doubles with a polished 2-1 win, keeping their pairing unbeaten this season. But Kolkata’s Aruna Quadri brought the momentum back, powering past Sathiyan in a heavyweight clash.
With the tie on the line, Diya showed maturity in a 3-0 sweep over debutant Ananya Chande, guiding Delhi to an eleventh-hour 8-7 triumph. Kolkata’s Diaz picked up the Foreign Player and Shot of the Tie award, while Diya was named the Indian Player of the Tie for her crucial role.
In the earlier tie between Goa Challengers and Pune Jaguars, Goa captain Harmeet stretched his singles winning streak to three with a tight 2-1 win over Alvaro Robles, while Krittwika returned to the lineup with a 2-1 win over debutant Zion Lee.
The duo of Harmeet and Zeng Jian breezed through the mixed doubles, and Zeng later handed Reeth Rishya her first loss of the season to cap Goa’s dominant outing. Anirban Ghosh put up a spirited fight for Pune, winning two games for his team. Harmeet and Zeng were named Indian and Foreign Players of the Tie, with Anirban awarded Shot of the Tie for a standout forehand winner.
In the UTT Juniors, U Mumba TT sealed a 6-3 win over Jaipur Patriots to finish top of the table, with Ananya Muralidharan starring in both singles and doubles.
In the day’s first tie, Divyanshi Bhowmick led Stanley’s Chennai Lions to a narrow 5-4 victory over Ahmedabad SG Pipers. The semifinals are now set: U Mumba face Jaipur Patriots once again, while Dempo Goa Challengers take on Kolkata ThunderBlades.
Final scores:
Dempo Goa Challengers 10-5 PBG Pune Jaguars
Harmeet Desai bt. Alvaro Robles 2-1 (11-10, 11-9, 10-11)
Krittwika Sinha Roy bt. Zion Lee 2-1 (11-5, 7-11, 11-6)
Harmeet Desai/Zeng Jian bt. Anirban Ghosh/Zion Lee 3-0 (11-9, 11-5, 11-9)
Tiago Apolonia lost to Anirban Ghosh 1-2 (9-11, 11-8, 7-11)
Zeng Jian bt. Reeth Rishya 2-1 (10-11, 11-7, 11-4)
Dabang Delhi TTC 8-7 Kolkata ThunderBlades
Izaac Quek lost to Ankur Bhattacharjee 1-2 (6-11, 11-6, 10-11)
Maria Xiao lost to Adriana Diaz 1-2 (7-11, 5-11, 11-10)
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran/Maria Xiao bt. Ankur Bhattacharjee/Adriana Diaz 2-1 (11-7, 11-7, 9-11)
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran lost to Quadri Aruna 1-2 (11-7, 9-11, 6-11)
Diya Chitale bt. Ananya Chande 3-0 (11-4, 11-6, 11-7)
(IANS)
