Manav Thakkar in action© UTT
Manav Thakkar's spirited fightback went down in vain as U Mumba TT lost their second tie of Ultimate Table Tennis 2024 to debutants Jaipur Patriots 6-9. Manav partnered Maria Xiao to stage a sensational comeback win for the team from Mumbai in the mixed doubles round; later, he fought back from a game down to beat Snehit SFR 2-1 in the tie's second men's singles. Still, earlier victories for Jaipur Patriots' international stars Cho Seung-min and Suthasini Sawettabut meant that a miracle come-from-behind win for U Mumbai TT proved just beyond their reach.
The franchise-based league is promoted by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani under the auspices of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI).
Cho, playing just his second match in UTT, defeated African table tennis great Quadri Aruna in the tie's first men's singles 3-0. Suthasini followed in his footsteps by besting Spain's Maria Xiao over three games by a two-one margin, their match decided by a Golden Point.
Manav's outstanding display meant the impetus to continue the fightback fell on Sutirtha Mukherjee. However, Jaipur Patriots' Nithyashree Mani maintained her composure amid the high pressure - hitting some incredible shots along the way - to hand the tie to the debutants.
For his efforts, Manav took home the Indian Player of the Tie award. Cho was named the Foreign Player of the Tie, while Nithyashree claimed the DafaNews Shot of the Tie for her incredible chop finish from a tight angle.
In the day's earlier tie, Chennai Lions secured their first win of UTT 2024 over Dabang Delhi TTC by an 8-7 scoreline. The hosts started positively through Achanta Sharath Kamal, who beat Andreas Levenko 2-1 in the first men's singles. The next three matches followed suit, with Chennai Lions winning 2-1 in each before Dabang Delhi TTC's Diya Chitale recorded a clean sweep over Poymantee Baisya for her first win in the league.
Tomorrow's only tie will see the PBG Bengaluru Smashers take on Puneri Paltan TT at 19:30, with both teams looking to take a significant step forward.
UTT 2024 is being broadcast live on Sports18 Khel and streamed online on JioCinema (India) and Facebook Live (Outside India). Tickets are available online on BookMyShow and offline at the box office near Gate no. 1 of the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.