Telangana paddler Mohd Farooqui Zubair won the men’s singles 40+ singles title as seasoned campaigners produced a string of gripping contests as the 32nd National Masters Table Tennis Championships concluded at the Balewadi Indoor Stadium in Pune on Monday.
Several finals went the distance across age categories. In the men’s 40+ singles, Mohd Farooqui Zubair edged past Assam’s Anal Kashyap in a hard-fought five-game encounter, recovering from a slow start to seal the title. Santosh Araswilli and Sujay Chaturvedi (IA&AD) combined effectively to claim the doubles crown.
The men’s 45+ singles final was among the most dramatic, with R Rajesh (Tamil Nadu) staging a remarkable comeback after dropping the first two games to overcome Koushik De Sarkar (West Bengal) in five. De Sarkar, however, found consolation by pairing with Soumik De Sarkar to win the doubles title.
Maharashtra’s Kiran Salian dominated the men’s 50+ singles final, defeating Manish Nepali (Himachal Pradesh) in straight games, but fell short in the doubles, where Mukul Boro and Jagat Singh Bisht (RBI) clinched the title convincingly.
In the 55+ category, Harsh Chopra (Delhi) bounced back after losing the opening game to beat Ravindra Joshi (Maharashtra), while Jitendra Taori and Kishore Motwani (Madhya Pradesh) took the doubles honours.
In the women’s section, Aishwarya Narasimhan (Karnataka) was in commanding form, overcoming Mayuri Dixit (Maharashtra) in straight games to win the 40+ singles crown. The Telangana duo of Sonal Asrani and Bandaru Kiranmai secured the doubles title after a closely contested final.
Sadiya Vanjara (Maharashtra) emerged victorious in the women’s 45+ singles, winning a tight straight-games contest against Anjana Rao (Karnataka). The doubles title in this category went to Shruti Kanade Joshi and Sarika Varade, ensuring a strong showing for the host state.
Kiranmai’s heroics help Telangana clinch gold at the cost of hosts Maharashtra in 40+ final
Prasunna Parekh (Gujarat) rallied after dropping the first game to defeat Moonmoon Mukherjee (Maharashtra) in the women’s 50+ singles final and later teamed up with Sonal Joshi to win the doubles event. In the 55+ category, Shilpa Joshi (Maharashtra) dominated both singles and doubles, underlining her supremacy with commanding wins.
The mixed doubles events also featured intense battles, with Sujay Chaturvedi and Shobhana Solanki (IA&AD) winning the 40+ title, while Karnataka’s H S Shashank and Sowmya Shimoga clinched the 45+ crown. Maharashtra continued its strong run in the 50+ and 55+ sections, with Manish Rawat partnering Moonmoon Mukherjee, and Anagha Joshi teaming up with Prasad Naik, to emerge winners in their respective categories.
Overall, the championships showcased high-quality competition and enduring skill, as veteran paddlers across the country reaffirmed their class on the national stage.
Results: Men 40+ singles (final): Mohd Farooqui Zubair (Telg) beat Anal Kashyap (Asm) 10-12, 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 11-6. Doubles: Santosh Araswilli/Sujay Chaturvedi (IA&AD) beat Sameer Sahni/Sumit Nagpal (Del) 11-5, 11-8, 9-11, 11-5.
Men 45+ singles (final): R Rajesh (TN) beat Koushik De Sarkar (WB) 6-11, 10-12,11-7, 11-7, 13-11. Doubles: Kaushik De Sarkar/Soumik De Sarkar (WB) beat Amish Patel/Dharit Naik (Guj) 11-6, 11-5, 12-10.
Men 50+ singles (final): Kiran Salian (Mah) beat Manish Nepali (HP) 11-6, 11-9, 11-4. Doubles: Mukul Boro/Jagat Singh Bisht (RBI) beat Sameer Bhate/Kiran Salian (Mah) 11-7, 11-4,11-6.
Men 55+ singles (final): Harsh Chopra (Del) Ravindra Joshi (Mah) 9-11, 11-5, 11-3, 11-8. Doubles: Jitendra Taori/Kishore Motwani (MP) beat Neelkanth Potdar/Nitin Toshniwal (Mah) 11-7, 11-9, 11-6.
Women 40+ singles (final): Aishwarya Narasimhan (Kar) beat Mayuri Dixit (Mah) 11-5, 11-8, 11-7. Doubles: Sonal Asrani/Bandaru Kiranmai (Telg) beat Divya Amade/Pramila Dewangan (CG) 12-10, 11-5, 16-14.
Women 45+ singles (final): Sadiya Vanjara (Mah) beat Anjana Rao (Kar) 12-10, 12-10, 11-6. Doubles: Shruti Kanade Joshi/Sarika Varade (Mah) beat Snehal Bhatt/Radhika Dorle (Mah) 11-5, 11-5.
Women 50+ singles (final): Prasunna Parekh (Guj) beat Moonmoon Mukherjee (Mah) 8-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-9. Doubles: Sonal Joshi/Prasunna Parekh (Guj) beat Neeta Vaishnav/Archana Rathore (MP) 11-4, 11-8, 11-5.
Women 55+ singles (final): Shilpa Joshi (Mah) beat Trupti Machwe (Mah) 11-4, 11-8, 11-1. Doubles: Shilpa Joshi/Anagha Joshi (Mah) beat Sneha Padhye/Trupti Machwe (Mah) 11-3, 11-2, 11-4.
Mixed Doubles 40+: Sujay Chaturvedi/Shobhana Solanki (IA&AD) beat Pathik Mehta/Krupa Shah (Guj) 8-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-5.
Mixed Doubles 45+: H S Shashank/Sowmya Shimoga (Kar) beat Bhavesh Shah/Shruti Kanade Joshi (Mah) 15-11, 11-9, 11-4.
Mixed Doubles 50+: Manish Rawat/Moonmoon Mukherjee (Mah) beat Prasunna Parekh/Mihir Vyas (Guj) 11-9, 11-8, 11-9.
Mixed Doubles 55+: Anagha Joshi/Prasad Naik (Mah) beat Shagun Sutaria/Neha Patel.
