Telangana paddler Srinivas Chalavadi hogs the limelight by winning a double in 80+ category

Telangana’s Srinivas Chalavadi hogged the spotlight even as the paddles were still in motion, and a few finals remained on the schedule on Day 3 of the 32nd Masters National Table Tennis Championships at the Balewadi Indoor Stadium in Pune on Sunday.

The day firmly belonged to Srinivas, who clinched the men’s 80+ singles crown with a composed 3-1 victory over Gujarat’s Indresh Purohit. As if he was not satisfied with the singles crown, the Telangana paddler then teamed up with Devendra Nath Deshani to edge past the Maharashtrian duo of Subodh Deshpande and Satish Shirsat 3–2 (11–6, 11–9, 9–11, 12–14, 11–8) in a hard-fought contest to claim the doubles final in the same category.

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In what turned out to be a contest of shifting momentum, Indresh drew first blood in a tense opening game, edging it 15-13 after a prolonged battle. However, Srinivas quickly recalibrated, asserting control with measured placement and consistency to wrap up the next three games. The Telangana veteran looked increasingly assured as the match wore on, closing out the fourth game comfortably to seal the title in style.

Srinivas’ path to final was straightforward

Srinivas’ path to the final had been far more straightforward. In the semifinals, he brushed aside Madhya Pradesh’s Ramesh Malviya in straight games, barely breaking a sweat in a dominant display. Indresh, on the other hand, had to dig deeper in his semifinal clash against Karnataka’s S Gopalan. Despite winning in straight games, the Gujarat paddler was pushed in two tightly contested encounters, including a gripping deuce game that tested his resolve.

Maharashtra women assert their dominance

The women’s events, meanwhile, saw Maharashtra assert its dominance across multiple age categories. Veena Joshi emerged victorious in the combined women’s 70+, 75+, and 80+ singles event, overcoming Rajasthan’s Kamlesh Jain in straight games with clinical precision. The fourth player, Chhaya Jhadav, was awarded bronze after she qualified for the knockout stages of the same categories.

In the women’s 65+ singles, Rajeshwari Mhetre added another gold for the host state, recovering from a first-game setback to defeat Madhya Pradesh’s Rita Jain 3-1 in a well-contested final.

Perhaps the most riveting contest of the day came in the women’s 60+ singles final, where Mantu Murmu of Maharashtra outlasted Rubi Kaur of Madhya Pradesh in a five-game thriller. The match ebbed and flowed, with both players trading momentum, before Mantu held her nerve in the decider to secure the title.

Delhi, Maharashtra men win team titles

In other team events held on Saturday evening, Delhi clinched the men’s 65+ title with a commanding 3–0 victory over Maharashtra ‘A’ in the final. Maharashtra, who had earlier lost to their ‘A’ side in the semifinals, and Karnataka, defeated by Delhi, settled for bronze medals.

Maharashtra’s 60+ men added to the tally, securing gold with an identical 3–0 win over Tamil Nadu. The bronze medals were claimed by Maharashtra ‘B’ and Gujarat, who went down in closely fought semifinals to Maharashtra (2–3) and Tamil Nadu (1–3), respectively.

Maharashtra’s women continued the dominance, capturing gold in the combined 65+ and 70+ team championships with a comfortable straight-games win over Delhi. Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra’s ‘A’ team, both semi-finalists, took home the bronze medals.

Results: Men’s 80+ singles (final): Srinivas Chalavadi (Telg) beat Indresh Purohit (Guj) 13-15, 11-6, 11-6, 11-8. Semifinals: Indresh beat S Gopalan (Kar) 11-6, 11-9, 14-12; Srinivas beat Ramesh Malviya (MP) 11-7, 11-1, 12-10

Women’s 70+, 75+ & 80 singles+ (final): Veena Joshi (Mah) beat Kamlesh Jain (Raj) 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.

Women’s 65+ singles+ (final): Rajeshwari Mhetre (Mah) beat Rita Jain (MP) 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-6. Semifinals: Rita beat Indu Sharma (Del) 7-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-9; Rajeshwari beat Rohini Marathe (Del) 11-5, 11-8, 11-3.

Women’s 60+ singles+ (final): Mantu Murmu (Mah) beat Rubi Kaur (MP) 11-9, 9-11, 13-11, 13-15, 11-7. Semifinals: Mantu beat Manisha Kataria (MP) 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 12-10; Rubi beat Rashmi Soni (MP) 11-9, 12-10, 11-8.