RBI’s Manush Shah survives scare from Balamurugan; Sayali ousted in Round of 64

Top-seeded Manush Shah of RBI survived a major scare in the men’s singles Round of 64, while the women’s singles draw saw a string of upsets as the UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships entered the Round of 32 at the Sportz Hub in Kanpur on Saturday.

Manush, one of the leading contenders for the title, was pushed to the limit by Tamil Nadu’s M R Balamurugan before prevailing 11-3, 11-3, 3-11, 7-11, 11-8. After racing through the opening two games, the top seed saw Balamurugan fight back strongly to level the contest, but Manush steadied himself in the decider to avoid what would have been a major upset.

The remaining 15 seeded players in the men’s draw had comparatively little trouble advancing to the Round of 32, though a number of matches went the distance.

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West Bengal’s Oishik Ghosh survived a close encounter with RSPB’s Jayabrata Battacharjee, recovering from a 1-2 deficit to win 11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 11-4, 12-10. The deciding game went down to the wire before Ghosh held his nerve. Manipur’s K Segal Singh also endured a grueling battle, overcoming his opponent 14-12, 11-5, 5-11, 6-11, 11-8. Maharashtra’s Raegan Albuquerque secured another five-game win, defeating Karnataka’s P Yeshwant 7-11, 11-3, 11-5, 7-11, 11-1.

IA&AD’s Abhimanyu Mitra was pushed hard by Haryana’s Vatsal Duklan before winning 11-8, 13-11, 9-11, 7-11, 11-9. Haryana’s Ankur Bhattacharjee secured another close win, edging West Bengal’s Arnab Chanda 4-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-7, 11-9 after recovering from an early setback.

Sayali Wani ousted by Kavyashree

The women’s competition, meanwhile, saw considerably more upheaval, with eighth-seeded Sayali Wani of PSPB among the prominent casualties. Tamil Nadu’s Kavyashree Baskar staged an impressive comeback from two games down to defeat Wani, 9-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-7.

Sayali Wani was upstaged by Tamil Nadu’s Kavyashree Baskar. Pics: UTT Butterfly

Second-seeded Syndrela Das of West Bengal also had to work hard for her place in the last 32. Railways’ Sneha Bhowmick pushed the favored Das into a five-game battle, but Syndrela regained her composure at crucial moments to prevail 12-10, 8-11, 11-2, 7-11, 11-2.

IA&AD’s Anjali Rohilla survived another tight contest against Tamil Nadu’s Selena Deepti Selvakumar. After trading games, Rohilla kept her nerve in a tense deciding game, prevailing 11-13 in the fifth to seal a 3-2 victory.

West Bengal’s Subhankrita Datta looked more assured in her 11-4, 2-11, 11-8, 11-7 win over Uttar Pradesh’s Avani Tripathi, while compatriot Ankolika Chakraborty staged one of the day’s most dramatic comebacks. After dropping the first two games to Delhi’s Sayanika Maji, Chakraborty fought back to win 18-20, 9-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-8.

Maharashtra’s Pritha Vartikar also came from behind in a seesaw battle against Taneesha Kotecha, eventually prevailing 10-12, 13-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-3.

With Wani’s departure and several players from the 9-16-seeded bracket also exiting, the lower half of the women’s draw has opened up significantly. The leading contenders remain in the hunt, but Syndrela’s escape against Bhowmick underscored that the road to the title is unlikely to be straightforward.

The men’s draw, by contrast, largely followed expected lines, but the leading contenders cannot afford to relax as the competition advances to the Round of 32.

Meanwhile, the U-19 boys’ and girls’ Round of 64 gets underway, while the men and women play up to the Round of 16. However, the boys and girls play only up to the Round of 32 today.

Important results:

Men’s Singles: Round of 64: Manush Shah (RBI) beat M.R. Balamurugan (TN) 11-3, 11-3, 3-11, 7-11, 11-8; Oishik Ghosh (WB) beat Jayabrata Battacharjee (RSPB) 11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 11-4, 12-10; K. Segal Singh (Man0 14-12, 11-5, 5-11, 6-11,11-8; Raegan Albuquerque (Mah) beat P. Yeshwant (Kar) 7-11, 11-3, 11-5, 7-11, 11-1; Abhimanyu Mitra (IA&AD) beat Vatsal Duklan (Har) 11-8, 13-11, 9-11, 7-11, 11-9; Ankur Bhattacharjee (Har) beat Arnab Chanda (WB) 4-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-7, 11-9.

Women’s Singles: Round of 64:Anjali Rohilla (IA&AD) beat Selena Deepti Selvakumar (TN) 11-6, 9-11, 8-11, 11-9, 13-11; Kavyashree Baskar (TN) beat Sayali Wani (PSPB) 9-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-7; Subhankrita Datta (WB) beat Avani Tripathi (UP) 11-4, 2-11, 11-8, 11-7; Ankolika Chakraborty (WB) beat Sayanika Maji (Del) 18-20, 9-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-8; Pritha Vartikar (Mah) beat Taneesha Kotecha (Mah) 10-12, 13-11, 9-11, 13-11, 11-3; Syndrela Das (WB) beat Sneha Bhowmick (RSPB) 12-10, 8-11, 11-2, 7-11, 11-2.