Dabang Delhi TTC made a strong comeback to defeat UP Prometheans 9-6 in the opening double-header of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 7 at Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium in Panaji. Despite the final score indicating a comfortable win, Delhi faced tough competition from UP Prometheans in every match.
UP Prometheans took an early lead with star Indian paddler Manav Thakkar winning against Egypt’s Youssef Abdelaziz 2-1. The introduction of the Table Tennis Review (TTR) system in UTT Season 7 saw Thakkar successfully challenging a serve by Abdelaziz, utilizing the new appeals system effectively.
Dabang Delhi responded swiftly as Spanish player Maria Xiao defeated Australia’s Yangzi Liu 2-1 to level the tie. Xiao, along with Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, dominated the mixed doubles match, securing a 3-0 victory and putting Delhi in the lead at 6-3. Gnanasekaran further extended Delhi’s advantage with a hard-fought win over Germany’s Ricardo Walther.
UP Prometheans fought back when Sayali Wani won a close match against Divyanshi Bhowmick, but it wasn’t enough to stop Delhi from clinching the overall victory. Maria Xiao was recognized as the ChatGPT Match IQ Player of the Tie for her exceptional performance, while Ricardo Walther received the Bisleri Shot of the Tie award for his impressive display during the match.
In other UTT Juniors matches running alongside Season 7 in Goa, U Mumba TT secured a 5-4 victory against Dempo Goa Challengers, and HVR Kolkata ThunderBlades continued their winning streak with a 5-4 triumph over Ahmedabad APL Pipers.
