Outstanding performances from Indian aces Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Diya Chitale powered Dabang Delhi TTC to a dominant 11-4 win over Jaipur Patriots in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6 opener on Saturday.
Returning to Dabang Delhi for a sixth successive season, Sathiyan kicked off his campaign in style, sweeping Jeet Chandra 3-0 en route to sealing the tie for Delhi in Match 4, Game 2. Diya, the highest-valued Indian player at this season’s auction, followed with a sharp 2-1 win over World No. 43 Britt Eerland–an opponent ranked 43 places above her–in a productive outing for the Season 2 champions.
Staged under the aegis of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) and promoted by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani, the IndianOil 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, with tickets available only on BookMyShow.
UTT Season 6 opened with a nail-biting clash as USA’s Kanak Jha, a three-time Olympian, faced Singapore’s 19-year-old sensation Izaac Quek. Despite Kanak’s higher ranking and strong start, Izaac turned the tide with blistering backhand smashes to win 2-1 for Dabang Delhi. Jaipur’s Sreeja Akula then staged a gritty comeback against Maria Xiao after recovering from losing the first seven points of the match and sealing a 2-1 win with the season’s first Golden Point.
In the mixed doubles, the scratch pairing of Sathiyan and Maria clicked instantly for Delhi, winning 11-6, 11-10, 11-6 to swing momentum their way. Building on that platform, Sathiyan and Diya Chitale sealed the final two matches, powering Delhi to a dominant victory in the tie.
Sathiyan claimed the Indian Player of the Tie award for his clean sweep over Jeet, while Maria took home the double honours of Foreign Player of the Tie and Shot of the Tie.
Earlier, at the Dream UTT Juniors, both Maharashtra sides clinched narrow 5-4 wins. U Mumba TT edged past Stanley’s Chennai Lions with key victories from Prateek Tulsani and Ananya Muralidharan, while PBG Pune Jaguars sealed their win over Kolkata ThunderBlades with a commanding doubles performance by Atharva Nawarange and Tushti Sood.
Final scores:
Dabang Delhi TTC 11-4 Jaipur Patriots
Izaac Quek bt. Kanak Jha 2-1 (5-11, 11-5, 11-9)
Maria Xiao lost to Sreeja Akula 1-2 (11-4, 9-11, 10-11)
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran/Maria Xiao bt. Kanak Jha/Sreeja Akula 3-0 (11-6, 11-10, 11-6)
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran bt. Jeet Chandra 3-0 (11-6, 11-7, 11-6)
Diya Chitale bt. Britt Eerland 2-1 (11-8, 11-7, 8-11)
