UTT Season 6: Stanley's Chennai Lions eye breakthrough against Harmeet Desai-driven Dempo Goa Challengers
Stanley's Chennai Lions will be searching for their first tie win of the campaign when they take on reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6 on Monday.
Chennai may still be searching for their first tie win of the season, but UTT's distinctive format–where every game matters–has kept them firmly in the playoff conversation. Despite four straight defeats, Chennai sit fifth on the table, level on points with Dempo Goa Challengers, thanks to narrow margins and consistent game hauls. With an average of 6.5 games won per tie, they remain one of the most dangerous teams in the league – even without a tie win.
Much of that credit goes to Fan Siqi and Payas Jain. China's Fan, who suffered her first loss of the season against Yashaswini Ghorpade in the previous tie, remains one of the league's most dominant paddlers across serve and shot stats. Payas, meanwhile, has quietly become one of the most complete players in the league - his serve success ranks second (64%), forehand fourth (51%), and backhand inside the top 10.
A possible face-off between him and Harmeet Desai - Goa's unbeaten talisman - could be pivotal. Fan's potential match-up against Zeng Jian or Krittwika Sinha Roy, both of whom are also yet to lose this season, is one to keep an eye on, too.
Reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers come in as the more settled outfit, gunning for a third straight playoffs appearance. At the core of their campaign are Harmeet, Zeng, and Krittwika – collectively contributing 18 of Goa's 26 points (after three ties). Harmeet, in particular, has been sharp, boasting the third-best backhand win rate in the league (42%), while Zeng continues to boss both flanks with top-five win percentages on forehand and backhand.
With Tiago Apolonia and the Harmeet-Zeng duo still looking for consistency in doubles, Goa will be eyeing this tie as a chance to firm up their top-four credentials. However, Chennai's resilience and their ability to keep every tie close mean this could be a crucial swing fixture in the playoff race.
Squads-
Stanley's Chennai Lions: Fan Siqi (China), Kirill Gerassimenko (Kazakhstan), Payas Jain, Sudhanshu Grover, Poymantee Baisya, Nikhat Banu.
Dempo Goa Challengers: Zeng Jian (Singapore), Harmeet Desai, Tiago Apolonia (Portugal), Ronit Bhanja, Krittwika Sinha Roy, Sayali Wani.
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