UTT 2024: Debutants Ahmedabad SG Pipers face former champs Dabang Delhi in SF

CHENNAI: Debutants Ahmedabad SG Pipers will hope to make it a memorable campaign by reaching their maiden Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) title clash when they take on 2018 champions Dabang Delhi TTC in the second semi-final of the 2024 season at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on Friday.

The winner of the knockout fixture will set their date with defending champions Athlead Goa Challengers in Saturday’s summit clash. The Harmeet Desai-led Athlead Goa Challengers on Thursday stormed into their second successive UTT final when they handed a 8-4 defeat to the Manika Batra-led PBG Bengaluru Smashers in the first semi-final.

Playing their maiden season, Ahmedabad SG Pipers and Dabang Delhi TTC exchanged places after the end of the league stage on Wednesday with the Ahmedabad-based outfit finishing second with 42 points while the Delhi-based team ended third with 41 points.

Fresh from a 12-3 drubbing of fellow UTT 2024 debutants, Jaipur Patriots in their final league outing on Wednesday, Ahmedabad SG Pipers appear a formidable force as they gear up against former champions Dabang Delhi TTC.

Led respectively by young Manush Shah and the experienced Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, the clash between the two sides promises to be an absolute thriller with both Manush and Sathiyan potentially facing off in the men’s singles opener. The presence of World No. 13 Bernadette Szocs of Romania in the Ahmedabad SG Pipers squad bolsters their equation in the potential match-up against Thailand’s Orawan Paranang.

Squads:

Ahmedabad SG Pipers: Manush Shah, Bernadette Szocs (Romania), Lilian Bardet (France), Reeth Tennison, Kritikwa Sinha Roy, Jash Modi

Dabang Delhi TTC: Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Orawan Paranang (Thailand), Diya Chitale, Andreas Levenko (Austria), Yashansh Malik, Lakshita Narang