West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu asserted their dominance with commanding performances to book their places in the semifinals of the Under-15 boys’ team event at the UTT 87th Inter-State Sub-Junior and Cadet National Table Tennis Championships at the M P Mittra Indoor Stadium in the Haresh Sangtani Sports Complex in Indore on Tuesday.
Gujarat scripted a significant milestone in their campaign, storming into the medal round for the first time in the championships’ history with a commanding 3-0 victory over PSPBA. The home side displayed remarkable composure and cohesion, much to the delight of the local supporters. Vivaan Dave led from the front with a dominant straight-games win, setting the tone early, while Dev Bhatt reinforced Gujarat’s control with a confident performance despite dropping a game. Their doubles pairing of Vivaan and Dev then combined seamlessly to close out the tie in straight games, underlining Gujarat’s growing stature and all-round strength. Their emphatic progression not only secured a semifinal berth but also guaranteed a historic medal.
Telangana and Gujarat boys all but through; frontrunners tighten grip in U-15 team event
Earlier, West Bengal delivered one of the most clinical displays of the quarterfinals, blanking Rajasthan 3-0. Aditya Das set the tone with a straight-games win over Tushar Ramchandani, while Rishaan Chattopadhyay maintained the momentum with another convincing victory against Aarav Acharya. The doubles pair of Aditya and Rishaan then sealed the tie efficiently despite a brief resistance from the Rajasthan duo.
Maharashtra were equally authoritative in their 3-0 triumph over Telangana, though the opening match saw a brief challenge. Nilay Pattekar recovered after dropping the first game to overcome Bolishetty Yashvasin, and Prateek Tulsani edged out Harshith Bachupalli in a hard-fought five-game encounter to ensure Maharashtra’s smooth passage.
Tamil Nadu faced the stiffest resistance among the quarterfinal winners but emerged 3-1 against NCOE in a gripping contest. Akash Rajavelu gave Tamil Nadu an early lead, but K. Akshay Bhushan’s loss to Somdev Sengupta allowed NCOE to level. The doubles pair of Aakshay and J.N. Sanjey Arwindh restored the advantage before Akash returned to outlast Somdev in a tense five-game match, clinching the decisive point.
Earlier, the pre-quarterfinals largely followed expected lines, with West Bengal, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Gujarat recording comfortable 3-0 wins over Delhi, Odisha, Karnataka, and Goa, respectively. Rajasthan, NCOE, and Tamil Nadu also progressed without much trouble, while PSPBA outplayed Punjab 3-0 to complete the quarterfinal lineup.
The winners play the semifinals later in the night.
Results: Under-15 Youth Boys (quarterfinals): West Bengal beat Rajasthan 3-0 (Aditya Das beat Tushar Ramchandani 11-8, 12-10, 11-8, Rishaan Chattopadhyay beat Aarav Acharya 11-9, 11-9, 11-9, Aditya/Rishaan beat Aarav/Tushar 11-6, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8); Maharashtra beat Telangana 3-0 (Nilay Pattekar beat Bolishetty Yashvasin 8-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-5, Prateek Tulsani beat Harshith Bachupalli 11-13, 11-5, 11-8, 6-11, 11-8); Gujarat beat PSPBA 3-0 (Vivaan Dave beat Viren Patil 11-4, 11-9, 11-5, Dev Bhatt beat S. Karmeghakannan 11-9, 11-7, 2-11, 11-6, Vivaan/Dev beat Viren/Karmeghakannan 11-9, 14-12, 11-7); Tamil Nadu beat NCOE 3-1 (Akash Rajavelu beat Samriddho Bhattacharya 11-5, 11-8, 10-12, 11-9, K. Akshay Bhushan lost to Somdev Sengupta 11-8, 7-11, 10-12, 3-11, Aakshay/J.N. Sanjey Arwindhb t Samriddho/Somdev 11-6, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, Akash beat Somdev 6-11, 8-11, 11-4, 12-10, 11-9).
Pre-quarterfinals: West Bengal beat Delhi 3-0; Rajasthan beat Madhya Pradesh 3-1; Telangana beat Odisha 3-0; Maharashtra beat Karnataka 3-0; Gujarat beat Goa 3-0; PSPBA beat Punjab 3-0; NCOE beat Uttar Pradesh 3-1; Tamil Nadu beat Haryana 3-0.
