Ultimate Table Tennis 2017: Shaze Challengers beat RP-SG Mavericks to clinch semis spot

Mumbai: Shaze Challengers rallied to beat RP-SG Mavericks 15-12 in the concluding league tie of the inaugural CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) on Thursday to qualify for the knockouts. Falcons TTC finished on top of the six-team League table with 78 points, followed by Shaze Challengers (73), Dabang Smashers TTC (69), DHFL Maharashtra United (64), Oilmax Stag Yoddhas (61) and RP-SG Mavericks (60). [caption id=“attachment_3865969” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Shaze Challengers’ Mouma Das in action against the RP-SG Mavericks. Image Courtesy: Facebook/@UltimateTableTennis[/caption] Falcons TTC will take on DHFL Maharashtra United in the first semi-final on Friday while Shaze Challengers will meet Dabang Smashers TTC in the second semi-final on Saturday. RP-SG Mavericks opened with a 2-1 win after Indian ace Sharath Kamal put it past World No 46 Croatian Andrej Gacina (Shaze Challengers) 11-7, 1-11, 11-7 in the men’s singles (Foreign v Indian). German Sabine Winter made it 4-2 for RP-SG Mavericks by winning the first two games in the women’s singles (Foreign v Indian) against Mouma Das but the Bengal lass pulled one back to score Shaze Challengers’ second point. In the mixed doubles (Foreign/Indian pair) which RP-SG Mavericks’ pair of Sharath Kamal/ Sofia Polcanova won 2-1 (11 -7, 11-5, 9-11) but Li Ping and Mouma Das picked a crucial point for Shaze Challengers by winning the third game, even as RP-SG Mavericks led 6-3. Austrian Stefan Fegerl extended RP-SG Mavericks’ lead to 8-4 with a 2-1 (2-11, 11-7, 11-8) win over Gacina in the men’s singles (Foreign player category). Winter won her second outing of the day when she beat fellow German Petrissa Solja 2-1 (11-10, 4-11, 11-6) in the women’s singles (Foreign player category) as RP-SG Mavericks moved to a commanding 10-5 lead. Soumyajit Ghosh then recorded Shaze Challengers’ first win of the day when he rallied to beat Fegerl 2-1 (9-11, 11- 10, 11-8) in the men’s singles (Foreign v Indian) to reduce his team’s margin of deficit to 7-11. China-born German World No 9 Han Ying brushed aside 17- year-old Archana Girish Kamath, 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-4) to help narrow down Shaze Challengers’ deficit down to one point (10- 11). Qatar World No 42 Li Ping beat Portuguese World No. 31 Tiago Apolonia 3-0 (11-4, 11-9, 11-10) in the men’s singles (Foreign player category) as Shaze Challengers took the lead for the first time in the tie, at 13-11. Han Ying then won her second match of the day when she beat Austrian Sofia Polcanova in the women’s singles (Foreign player category) 2-1 (11-3, 11-7, 10-11) to seal the tie for Shaze Challengers.