Maharashtra bagged a double in the 32nd Masters National Table Tennis Championships at the Balewadi Indoor Stadium in Pune on Saturday. Maharashtra delivered a dominant 3-0 victory over Chandigarh in the final of the men’s 75+ category and bagged the double by clinching the title in the 70+ category.
In the men’s 80+ category, Gujarat edged past Karnataka in a gripping 3-2 final. Indresh Purohit set the tone by defeating S. Gopalan in straight games, while K. Satyanarayan pulled Karnataka level with a win over Chimanlal Vidhani. The doubles contest swung momentum back to Gujarat, as Indresh and Chimanlal prevailed in a five-game battle. Gopalan responded with a win over Chimanlal to force a decider, but Indresh held his nerve, staging a comeback against Satyanarayan to seal the title. Earlier, Karnataka had scraped past Delhi 3-2 in the semifinals, while Gujarat defeated Telangana 3-1 to book their place in the final.
Hosts Maharashtra and Gujarat shine in the early round of the 32nd Masters National TT
The men’s 75+ final saw Maharashtra deliver a dominant 3-0 victory over Chandigarh. Despite a tight opening, Pinakin Sampat rallied to overcome Balbir Singh Virdi, before Satish Kulkarni extended the lead with a comfortable straight-game win. The Maharashtra pair of Sampat and Kulkarni then combined effectively in doubles to wrap up the tie. In the semifinals, Maharashtra had beaten Tamil Nadu ‘A’ 3-1, while Chandigarh advanced with a 3-1 win over Gujarat.
Maharashtra continued its strong showing in the men’s 70+ category, blanking Delhi 3-0 in the final. Yogesh Desai and Shivanand Kundaje both registered convincing singles wins, setting up a straightforward doubles finish as Jitu Movani and Percy Mehta closed out the contest. Maharashtra had earlier defeated Gujarat 3-0 in the semifinals, while Delhi edged Tamil Nadu 3-2 in a closely fought tie.
In the women’s 60+ round-robin league, Madhya Pradesh emerged as champions, finishing ahead of Gujarat and Maharashtra, with Telangana and Delhi completing the standings.
THE RESULTS (TEAM):
Results (team): Men’s 80+ (final): Gujarat beat Karnataka 2-3 (Indresh Purohit beat S Gopalan 11-9, 11-2, 11-8, Chimanlal Vidhani lost to K Satyanarayan 9-11, 5-11, 10-12, Indresh/Chimanlal beat Gopalan/Satyanarayan 11-4, 10-12, 6-11, 11-7, 11-3, Chimanlal lost to Gopalan 11-9, 6-11, 4-11, 5-11, Indresh beat Satyanarayan 2-11, 3-11, 11-5, 11-2, 11-3). Semifinals: Karnataka beat Delhi 3-2 (Satyanarayan lost to B.N. Khazanchi 8-11, 11-8, 4-11, 5-11, S. Gopalan beat Anand Prakash 11-3, 11-3, 11-3, Satyanarayana/Gopalan beat Khazanchi/Anand 10-12, 11-9, 5-11, 11-9, 12-10, Gopalan lost to Khazanchi 8-11, 8-11, 11-5, 13-11, 14-16, Satyanarayan beat Anand 11-6, 11-3, 11-6); Gujarat beat Telangana 3-1 (Indresh beat Devendra Nath 11-5, 11-6, 3-11, 11-8, Mahesh lost to Srinivas Chalavadi 5-11, 2-11, 3-11, Indresh/Chimanlal beat Devendra/Srinivas 9-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9, 11-8, Indresh beat Srinivas 7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-13, 11-2).
Men’s 75+ (final): Maharashtra beat Chandigarh 3-0 (Pinakin Sampat beat Balbir Singh Virdi 10-12, 13-11, 11-9, 11-9, Satish Kulkarni beat Patanjli Kumar 11-5, 11-6, 11-5, Pinakin/Satish beat Balbir/Patanjli 10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8). Semifinals: Maharashtra beat Tamil Nadu ‘A’ 3-1 (Satish beat S. Peter John 11-8, 11-6, 11-6, Pinakin lost to P.V. Ramakrishnan 10-12, 11-7, 11-4, 7-11, 8-11, Satish/Pinakin beat P.Idudjyaraj/Ramakrishnan 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, Satish beat Ramakrishnan 11-6, 11-3, 11-7); Chandigarh beat Gujarat 3-1 (Balbir beat Dilipkumar Shah 11-1, 11-4, 11-5, Patanjjli lost to Nazmi Khinkhabwala 9-11, 11-9, 4-11, 16-14, 8-11, Balbit/Patanjli beat Dilipkumar/Nazmi 11-6, 11-8, 12-10, Balbir beat Nazmi 11-8, 7-11, 10-12, 11-3, 11-7).
Men’s 70+ (final): Maharashtra beat Delhi 3-0 (Yogesh Desai beat M. Agarwal V. 11-7, 11-7, 11-6, Shivanand Kundaje beat R.N. Masaldan 11-4, 11-6, 11-2, Jitu Movani/Percy Mehta beat M. Singh Chaudhari/Suresh Kumar 11-6, 11-7, 11-8). Semifinals: Maharashtra beat Gujarat 3-0 (Yogesh beat Kshitish Purohit 11-7, 11-5, 11-6, Shivanand beat Kantilal Rathod 11-4, 11-6, 7-11, 11-8, Yogesh/Percy beat Kshitish/Kantilal 11-7, 10-12, 11-3, 11-6); Delhi beat Tamil Nadu 3-2 (Suresh lost to P.R. Premkumar 9-11, 6-11, 11-5, 8-11, Masaldan beat D. Alagarsamy 11-6, 11-5, 11-6, Suresh/Agarwal lost to Premkumar/Alagarsamy 7-11, 7-11, 7-11, Masaldan beat Premkumar 11-5, 11-5, 11-8, Suresh beat Alagarsamy 11-8, 11-8, 11-7).
Women’s 60+: Positions: Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, and Delhi.
