Published: May 3, 2026 at 6:06 pm
Maharashtra’s grip on the women’s events extended seamlessly into the individual arena, and their 45+ singles quarterfinals only reinforced that narrative in the 32nd National Masters Table Tennis Championships at the Balewadi Indoor Stadium in Pune on Sunday.
Even as challengers from across the country tried to break through, the home state ensured a commanding presence deep into the draw. Two Maharashtra paddlers powered their way into the semifinals, joining equally determined opponents from Gujarat and Karnataka, making it a well-contested final four while still guaranteeing the hosts a strong medal return.
In the quarterfinals, Shital Shah of Gujarat displayed clinical precision to dispatch Sarika Varade of Maharashtra in straight games. Karnataka’s Anjana Rao was equally dominant, brushing aside Shama Patni Adhikari with ease. The closest battles, however, featured Maharashtra’s resilience, Sadiya Vanjara recovered from a first-game setback to defeat Delhi’s Priti Vats 3-1, while Shruti Kanade Joshi held her nerve in a tense four-game duel against compatriot Radhika Dorle.
If the women’s draw highlighted Maharashtra’s consistency, the Men’s 40+ singles Round of 64 delivered sheer competitive drama, with several matches going the distance. Several players booked their spots in the Round of 32 through gritty 3-2 victories, underlining the depth in this veteran category.
Telangana paddlers shine
Among the standout performers, Telangana’s Raja Sureddy edged past Goa’s Sandeep D’Mello in a nail-biting five-game encounter. Delhi’s Sumit Nagpal showed composure under pressure to overcome Haryana’s Vinay Yadav 3-2, while his teammate Evgeni Saposnikov also survived a tough test against Maharashtra’s Suraj Narayan by the same margin.
Another intense clash saw Rakesh Kumar of IA&AD outlast Delhi’s Abhilash Thomas 3-2. Madhya Pradesh’s Kunal Gajbhiye battled past Maharashtra’s Narendra Sannabharti in five games, while Telangana’s Mohd Farooqui eked out a hard-fought win over Karnataka’s Pranav Verma, again in a full-distance match and another Telangana paddler Thirthadip Ghosh defeated Andhra Pradesh’s V N Raju 3-1.
Elsewhere, several players advanced more comfortably, but it was these marathon encounters that defined the round, setting up a fiercely contested Round of 32.
Wrapping up the day’s action, the scheduling now shifts focus to the decisive stages across categories. The women in the 40+, 50+, and 55+ divisions do not have singles matches on Sunday but will return to the tables on Monday for their quarterfinal clashes.
Among the men, the 40+ and 45+ categories began with the Round of 64 and will conclude the penultimate day with the Round of 32. Meanwhile, the 50+ and 55+ competitors started directly from the Round of 32. For all categories, the final day promises a packed schedule, beginning with the pre-quarterfinals and culminating in the finals, mirroring the format followed across both sections.
Results: Women 45+ (quarterfinals): Shital Shah (Guj) beat Sarika Varade (Mah) 11-5, 11-9, 11-6; Anjana Rao (Kar) beat Shama Patni Adhikari (Mah) 11-5, 11-3, 11-7; Sadiya Vanjara (Mah) beat Priti Vats (Del) 12-14, 11-9, 11-2, 11-6; Shruti Kanade Joshi (Mah) beat Radhika Dorle (Mah) 11-8, 11-8, 4-11, 13-11.
Men 40+ (round 64): Pakhya Saha (ESIC) beat Saurabh Mohite (Mah) 3-1, Rahul Sarkar (Del) beat Ramesh Prusty (Mah) 3-0, Vikram Aaditya (ESIC) beat Amal Bharti (Raj) 3-0, Sujit Kumar (TN) beat Royston Suresh (Kar) 3-1, Thirthadip Ghosh (Telg) beat V N Raju (AP) 3-1, C.R. Satyajit (Kar) beat Rayomand Marolia (Mah) 3-1, Viral Patel (Guj) beat Sharath Sankar (TN) 3-0, Anit Sen (UP) nt K.J. Avinash (Kar) 3-0, Rupesh Gharat (Mah) beat Atul Mangwana (Del) 3-0, Keval Vakani (Guj) beat Prashant Yadav (Har) 3-1, Raja Sureddy (Telg) beat Sandeep D’Mello (Goa) 3-2, P.V. Sandeep (Kar) beat Sagar Shah (Mah) 3-1, Sumit Nagpal (Del) beat Vinay Yadav (Har) 3-2, Evgeni Saposnikov (Del) beat Suraj Narayan (Mah) 3-2, Anal Kashyap (Asm) beat Shyam Bharadwaj (Telg) 3-0, Pathak Mehta (Guj) beat Vinay Kumar (Kar) 3-0, Navin (MP) beat Somnath Chakraborty (IA&AD) 3-1, Suyash Kunte (Mah) beat Sudhanshu Arya (Har) 3-1, Saurabh Poddar (UP) beat R. Vijaivakish (TN) 3-0, Naman Khandhar (Guj) beat U.N. Ramkumar (Kar) 3-0, Dharmrajsinh Rana (ESIC) beat Sandeep Hebbar (Kar) 3-1, Rakesh Kumar (IA&AD) beat Aabhilash Thomas (Del) 3-2, G. Vinodh (TN) Avinash Chauhan (Del) 3-0, Tushar Shah (Guj) beat D.T. Kaarthick (TN) 3-0, Kunal Gajbhiye (MP) beat Narendra Sannabharti (Mah) 3-2, Gurpreet Singh (ESIC) beat Gaurav Kumar (Del) 3-0, Mohd Farooqui (Telg) beat Pranav Verma (Kar) 3-2, Sujay Chaturvedi (IA&AD) beat V. Manikandan (TN) 3-1, Manish Saklani (Mah) beat Kiran Kumar (Telg) 3-0, Bharat Ram (Kar) beat Nirav Patel (Guj) 3-0.
