Athlead Goa Challengers, the defending champions of the IndianOil Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) 2024, secured a berth in the final after defeating PBG Bengaluru Smashers 8-4 in the first semi-final at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on Thursday.
The Goa Challengers started strong, with Mihai Bobocica upsetting Alvaro Robles’ unbeaten streak this season with a 2-1 victory in the first men’s singles. Yangzi Liu, later named the Foreign Player of the Tie, extended the lead with a 2-1 win over World No.25 Manika Batra in the first women’s singles.
PBG Bengaluru Smashers fought back with a 2-1 victory in the mixed doubles, but Harmeet Desai, a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medalist, sealed the deal for the defending champions with a 3-0 triumph over Jeet Chandra in the second men’s singles. Desai was recognized as the Indian Player of the Tie for his outstanding performance.
The Goa Challengers will now face the winner of the second semi-final between Dabang Delhi TTC and Ahmedabad SG Pipers in the final. The franchise-based league, promoted by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani under the auspices of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI), has captivated fans with its high-octane matches.
Tickets for the remaining matches are available online on BookMyShow and offline at the box office near Gate no. 1 of the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.
