Published: April 28, 2026 at 10:27 pm
India’s Snehit SFR emerged as a key addition for PBG Pune Jaguars at the Butterfly Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 7 auction on Tuesday, as the Hyderabad paddler was picked to strengthen the team’s Indian core for the upcoming season for his base value of 12 lakh tokens.
Sathiyan, Manika retained; Manav, Manush and Diya return to UTT Season 7 auction pool
Butterfly UTT Season 7 will feature seven teams competing in a single round-robin format, where each team will face every other team once in the league phase. The top four teams will progress to the knockout stage. The tournament will be held from July 9 to 26 in Goa.
Diya returns as highest-valued Indian player
Pune, meanwhile, continued to build around proven Indian excellence, with Diya Chitale returning as the highest-valued Indian player for the second year running at 37.4 lakh tokens, reaffirming her status as one of the league’s central figures. Backing that core, the Jaguars added France’s Prithika Pavade and Egypt’s Omar Assar, while further strengthening their domestic lineup with Mudit Dani and Sayanika Maji.
Commenting on the auction, Butterfly UTT co-promoter Vita Dani said: “The auction once again reflected the depth and quality that Butterfly UTT has built over the years. It was encouraging to see teams invest in both proven international names and emerging Indian players.”
Niraj Bajaj, Vita Dani, & Minal Bajaj with Ankur Bhattacharjee, Abhinandh PB, Divyanshu Bhowmick & Snehit Suravajjula during the auction of Ultimate Table Tennis 2026 season 7 at Hotel Sahara Star in Mumbai on Tuesday. Pic: Hariom Hans /Focus Sports/ ISL
Pune’s approach meant building around a dependable Indian core and surrounding it with global experience and tactical depth. Speaking on the occasion, team owner Punit Balan said, “Diya is already among the best players in the world, and we’re thrilled to have her as a central part of our plans. Around her, we’ve focused on building a strong, well-rounded unit.”
Pune built for consistency and impact
With a settled core and depth across categories, Pune Jaguars head into Season 7 with a squad built for consistency and impact. The league will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network and streamed on JioHotstar.
Bernadette Szocs of Romania emerged the top buy in the auction as he was snapped up by Dempo Goa Challengers for 40 lakh tokens. Australia’s Yangzi Liu was among the top five buys with UP Prometheans making a successful bid for 32 lakh tokens.
U Mumba strengthen squad
Meanwhile, reigning champions U Mumba TT strengthened their squad by signing India’s history-maker Manush Shah for 37.2 lakh tokens and Wales’ Anna Hursey while retaining a strong domestic core led by Akash Pal.
The team combined continuity with targeted additions, bringing back French paddler Lilian Bardet from the title-winning squad last season and reinforcing their line-up with emerging talent. U Mumba also secured Nithyashree Mani and Anusha Kutumbale, ensuring balance across categories and providing multiple combination options for the upcoming season.
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The 15-year-old Divyanshi Bhowmick became the youngest-ever player to be signed by a Butterfly UTT team. She earned a spot with Gnanasekaran Sathiyan-led Dabang Delhi TTC. Season 2 champions Delhi brought back Maria Xiao, rekindling a strong doubles’ pairing with Sathiyan. They also added Asian Games medalist Sutirtha Mukherjee, Youssef Albedaziz and Reagen Albuquerque to complete their line-up.
Syndrela snapped up by Goa
The 16-year-old Syndrela Das was picked up by Dempo Goa Challengers. The two-time champions Dempo Goa Challengers’ auction strategy saw them go for experience in their foreign sports with Spaniard Alvaro Robles returning to the team where he won the title in 2023. They filled up their Indian sports with the best emerging talent.
Rising Indian star Ankur Bhattacherjee was retained by Kolkata Thunder Blues, who built a well-rounded unit which features Ayhika Mukherjee, Eduard Ionescu, Taneesha Kotecha, Jeet Chandra and Zeng Jian.
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German ace Ricardo Walther, Sudhanshu Grover, Swastika Ghosh and Sayali Wani will complement Thakkar and Liu at UP Prometheans, who had made full use of their purse by bringing together Thakkar and Liu.
Ahmedabad APL Pipers’ big move came before the auction as they retained Manika Batra.
Butterfly UTT Season 7 – Top Buys
Bernadette Szocs (Romania) to Dempo Goa Challengers: 40 L tokens
Diya Chitale (India) to PBG Pune Jaguars: 37.4 L tokens
Manush Shah (India) to U Mumba TT: 37.2 L tokens
Manav Thakkar (India) to UP Prometheans: 36 L tokens
Yangzi Liu (Australia) to UP Prometheans: 32 L tokens
Butterfly UTT Season 7 squads
Ahmedabad APL Pipers: Manika Batra, Adrien Rassenfosse (Belgium), Kavya Bhatt, Sanil Shetty, Sofia Polcanova (Austria), Payas Jain.
Dabang Delhi TTC: Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Divyanshi Bhowmick, Maria Xiao (Spain), Youssef Abdelaziz (Egypt), Raegan Albuquerque, Sutirtha Mukherjee.
Dempo Goa Challengers: Bernadette Szocs (Romania), Syndrela Das, Alvaro Robles (Spain), Divyansh Srivastava, Ananya Chande, Abhinandh PB.
Kolkata Thunder Blades: Ankur Bhattacharjee, Ayhika Mukherjee, Eduard Ionescu (Romania), Taneesha Kotecha, Zeng Jian (Singapore), Jeet Chandra.
PBG Pune Jaguars: Diya Chitale, Prithika Pavade (France), Snehit SFR, Mudit Dani, Omar Assar (Egypt), Sayanika Maji.
U Mumba TT: Manush Shah, Akash Pal, Lilian Bardet (France), Anna Hursey (Wales), Nityashree Mani, Anusha Kutumbale.
UP Prometheans: Manav Thakkar, Yangzi Liu (Australia), Ricardo Walther (Germany), Sayali Wani, Sudhanshu Grover, Swastika Ghosh.
