Junior national champion Hansini Mathan, wild card entrant Sanil Shetty, and mixed doubles pair Payas Jain and Syndrela Das surprised higher-ranked players to progress to the second round of the WTT Feeder Series 2026 in Vadodara. Hansini, aged 16 and the youngest junior national champion in India, defeated world number 78 Yoo Yerin from South Korea in straight sets. She will now face Ryu Hanna in the next round.
Hansini also teamed up with Sampada Bhiwandkar to defeat third seeds Anusha Kutumbale and Baisya in the women’s doubles first round. The tournament in Vadodara is the first edition of the WTT Feeder Series, presented by the Sports Authority of Gujarat and organized by the Table Tennis Association of Baroda with UTT.
In the men’s singles event, Sanil Shetty staged a remarkable comeback from two sets down to overcome second seed Harmeet Desai. Another upset saw Priyanuj Bhattacharya defeating eighth seed Navid Shams to advance to the next round. In the mixed doubles, Payas Jain and Syndrela Das fought back to secure a victory and move forward in the competition.
Top players like Manush Shah, Snehit Suravajjula, and Ankur Bhattacharjee also advanced to the next round in the men’s singles category. Manush, a local favorite from Baroda, dominated his match, while Snehit and Ankur displayed strong performances to secure their spots in the next round.
