Latest news with #SathiyanGnanasekaran
United News of India
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- United News of India
UTT: Harmeet Desai downs Sathiyan G in epic battle
Ahmedabad, June 4 (UNI) Harmeet Desai downed Sathiyan Gnanasekaran in an epic battle between two of India's top men's paddlers, yet it wasn't enough for reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers, who went down 6-9 against Dabang Delhi TTC in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6. 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. All 23 ties, over 16 action-packed days, will take place at Ahmedabad's EKA Arena. A rematch of last season's final, the tie opened with 19-year-old Izaac Quek putting Dabang Delhi on the front foot, blanking Tiago Apolonia 3-0 in a generational clash between the league's youngest and oldest foreign players. Diya Chitale, then, fought hard against Singapore's Zeng Jian but couldn't prevent a straight-games defeat, levelling the tie at 3-3. Delhi struck back through the experienced duo of Sathiyan and Maria Xiao, who held their nerve in the mixed doubles against Harmeet and Zeng to win 2-1 and regain the lead. However, in a much-anticipated men's singles match, Harmeet edged Sathiyan 2-1 in a thriller, sealing it 11-9 in the decider, after the two had traded close games. But it was Xiao who had the final say. The Spanish star dominated her singles rubber against young Sayali Wani, wrapping up a 3-0 win and clinching the tie for Dabang Delhi TTC, who remain unbeaten in Season 6. For his efforts, Harmeet claimed the Indian Player and the Shot of the Tie honours, while Xiao took home the Foreign Player of the Tie award. Earlier, at the Dream UTT Juniors—a joint initiative by UTT and Dream Sports Foundation—U Mumba TT cruised to a 7-2 win over Ahmedabad SG Pipers, with Prateek Tulsani and Ananya Muralidharan starring in both singles and doubles. In a tighter contest, Jaipur Patriots edged Stanley's Chennai Lions 5-4, thanks to a dominant opening by Trishal Surapureddy and a crucial doubles point alongside Shreya Dhar. With the season now underway, all ties will be broadcast on Star Sports Khel and Star Sports 2 Tamil, and streamed live on JioHotstar for fans across the country. Final Scores: Dabang Delhi TTC 9-6 Dempo Goa Challengers Izaac Quek bt. Tiago Apolonia 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-9) Diya Chitale lost to Zeng Jian 0-3 (9-11, 5-11, 6-11) Sathiyan Gnanasekaran/Maria Xiao bt. Harmeet Desai/Zeng Jian 2-1 (8-11, 11-5, 11-8) Sathiyan Gnanasekaran lost to Harmeet Desai 1-2 (11-8, 9-11, 9-11) Maria Xiao bt. Sayali Wani 3-0 (11-3, 11-7, 11-6). UNI BM
Hans India
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hans India
UTT Season 6: Dabang Delhi eye revenge against Dempo Goa in 2024 final rematch
Ahmedabad: Dabang Delhi TTC will be looking to settle scores when they face reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers in a rematch of last year's final in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6 on Wednesday. Later, at 7:30 pm, Kolkata ThunderBlades will square up against PBG Pune Jaguars, both sides looking for their second win of the season. Dabang Delhi head into their blockbuster rematch against Dempo Goa Challengers with momentum on their side. After a dominant opening against Jaipur Patriots, Delhi's key players look dialled in: Sathiyan Gnanasekaran swept Jeet Chandra and partnered seamlessly with Maria Xiao in mixed doubles while Diya Chitale justified her top billing as the highest-valued Indian player in the auction with an upset win over World No. 42 Britt Eerland. With Izaac Quek, 19, also stunning three-time Olympian Kanak Jha in his debut, Delhi's top order is firing early. Their challenge for Delhi now is a Goa squad that opened with authority. Led by Harmeet Desai, who showed composure in his win over Ricardo Walther, the defending champs bring form and depth. Tiago Apolonia and Zeng Jian hit the ground running, and Krittwika Sinha Roy added to their firepower with a strong win over Ayhika. It's a clash of two balanced line-ups, with early-season supremacy on the line. In the evening tie, Kolkata ThunderBlades will look to build on a powerful debut led by their star trio - Aruna Quadri, Adriana Diaz, and breakout teen Ankur Bhattacharjee. Ankur's clinical takedown of Olympian Kirill Gerassimenko reaffirmed his status as one of the sport's most exciting young talents. Aruna and Diaz, ranked 27 and 17 respectively, played with calm authority, while Selena Selvakumar showed promise despite a tough draw. PBG Pune Jaguars stand in their way—dangerous and primed to back up the comeback win in their opening match. Olympian Alvaro Robles and debutant Dina Meshref will be keen to bounce back, but the real spark came from Anirban Ghosh and Reeth Rishya, who carried the side in the opener, highlighting the depth of Indian talent on display in the league. Expect both Pune and Kolkata to go all-in for back-to-back wins in this early-season tone-setter. Squads: Match 1 Dabang Delhi TTC: Diya Chitale, Maria Xiao (Spain), Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Quek Izaac (Singapore), Suhana Saini, Sourav Saha. Dempo Goa Challengers: Zeng Jian (Singapore), Harmeet Desai, Tiago Apolonia (Portugal), Ronit Bhanja, Krittwika Sinha Roy, Sayali Wani. Match 2 PBG Pune Jaguars: Alvaro Robles (Spain), Dina Meshref (Egypt), Taneesha Kotecha, Anirban Ghosh, Reeth Rishya, Mudit Dani. Kolkata ThunderBlades: Adriana Diaz (Puerto Rico), Aruna Quadri (Nigeria), Ankur Bhattacharjee, Selena Selvakumar, Ananya Chande, Deepit Patil.
