by Ian Marshall, ITTF Publications Manager

Against Falcons TTC in the second series of ties he partnered Sakura Mori to a three-nil doubles success against Sanil Shetty and Bernadette Szocs, prior to affording the same performance later in the contest when facing Alvaro Robles.

Likewise, on her second visit to the table, Sakura Mori beat Sutirtha Mukherjee three-nil to end the day with an unblemished record. Notable performances as was that of Masaki Yoshida against Sanil Shetty, he recorded a three-nil win but it was the performances of Manika Batra and Adriana Diaz that swayed the momentum in favour of the 17-4 Dabang Smashers win.

In the opening match of the fixture, both games being won on the “golden point” rule, Manika Batra beat Matilda Ekholm; in the fifth match Adriana Diaz recorded the same margin of victory in opposition to Bernadette Szocs.

Notably the coach advising Adriana Diaz was Andrei Filimon, like Bernadette Szocs from Romania; I have never seen a such a bright smile on his face when a national team compatriot lost!

The reaction underlined the fact that the CEAT Ultimate League is serious business and when compared with the traditional form of the game; it is high pressure.

Overall Dabang Smashers lead with 31 games won; having recorded a 14-7 win against Warriors in their opening contest.

Defeat for Warriors but in the clash that brought play in Pune to a close, it was a 14-7 win in opposition to Empowerji Challengers; three-nil wins for Quadri Aruna against Manav Thakkar and for Chuang Chih-Yuan in opposition to Simon Gauzy plus the same margin of success for Hana Matelova in opposition to Divya Deshpande sealed the victory.

The result is that alongside Falcons, Empowerji Challengers share fifth place in the order of merit, one place below Warriors.

Second place belongs to RP-SG Mavericks who in the second engagement beat Maharashtra United by the minimal 11-10 margin; notably Sabine Winter on duty for the Mavericks possessing an overall 6-0 record.

Play now moves to New Delhi where a further six ties will be played.

Second Series: 1. Dabang Smashers 31pts 2.RP-SG Mavericks 24 pts 3. Warriors 21pts 4. Maharashtra United 20pts 5. Empowerji Challengers & Falcons 15pts

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Latest News

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Thursday 14th June – Falcons TTC v Maharashtra United

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Friday 15th June – RP-SG Mavericks v Empowerji Challengers

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Saturday 16th June – Dabang Smashers TTC v Warriors TTC

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Sunday 17th June – RP-SG Mavericks v Maharashtra United

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Monday 18th June – Dabang Smashers TTC v Falcons TTC

CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis: Tuesday 19th June – Warriors TTC v Empowerji Challengers