Sathiyan's Heroics Fall Short as U Mumba TT Triumphs Over Dabang Delhi

Indian paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran's impressive victory over world No. 20 Quadri Aruna wasn't enough to secure a win for Delhi Dabang as they lost 6-9 to U Mumba in the fifth season of Ultimate Table Tennis. Meanwhile, captain Manush Shah led Ahmedabad SG Pipers to a 10-5 win over reigning champions Athlead Goa Challenger.

Indian paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran recorded an impressive victory over world No. 20 Quadri Aruna, but his efforts were not enough as Delhi Dabang fell 6-9 to U Mumba in the fifth season of Ultimate Table Tennis on Saturday.

In another match, captain Manush Shah led debutants Ahmedabad SG Pipers to a commendable 10-5 win over reigning champions Athlead Goa Challenger.

Shah delivered a stunning performance, defeating two-time Olympian Mihai Bobocica 2-1 in the singles match and teamed up with Bernadette Szocs for a similar score in mixed doubles. Frenchman Lilian Bardet initiated the winning streak for Ahmedabad by overcoming Harmeet Desai 3-0 in the first men's singles match. Szocs then achieved a sweeping victory over Yashaswini Ghorpade in the women's singles match. The mixed doubles match, where Shah and Szocs triumphed over Harmeet and Yangzi Liu, secured the tie for the debutants.

Despite Reeth Rishya's opportunity to secure the biggest margin of victory, Yangzi Liu's unbeaten streak continued, thereby preventing the team record. Earlier, although Sathiyan excelled by winning against Aruna, Delhi couldn't overcome U Mumba, who relied on strong performances from Manav Thakkar and Sutirtha Mukherjee. While Sathiyan and Orawan Paranag fell in mixed doubles to Manav and Maria Xiao, Manav later solidified the victory against Andreas Levenko, leading U Mumba TT to their first win over Dabang Delhi. Paranang also bested Xiao in the final women's singles, limiting the damage for Delhi.

(With inputs from agencies.)