UTT Season 6: U Mumba edge Goa to book spot in final

U Mumba TT staged a dramatic comeback to edge reigning champions Dempo Goa Challengers to enter the final of the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 6 in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

Trailing 4-7, U Mumba won the final four games to clinch an 8-7 victory and set up a summit clash with Jaipur Patriots. 

With Goa just one game away from the final and U Mumba needing a clean sweep in the last rubber, Yashaswini Ghorpade rose to the occasion, winning back-to-back games before clinching the decider 11-10 in a nerve-wracking finish.

Harmeet Desai gave Dempo Goa Challengers a strong start with a commanding 3-0 win over Lilian Bardet, sealing the third game on Golden Point after Bardet had rallied from 2-6 down.

But U Mumba hit back through Bernadette Szocs, who handed Zeng Jian her first defeat of the season. Szocs took the first two games with sharp counterplay before Zeng salvaged the third 11-7.

In the mixed doubles, U Mumba's Akash Pal and Szocs bounced back from a 3-6 deficit to seal games one and three, winning their rubber 2-1. That victory trimmed Goa's lead to a slender 5-4 heading into the remaining matches.

Vitor Ishiy nearly sealed the tie for Dempo Goa Challengers, racing through the first two games against Abhinandh P B with scores of 11-6 and 11-4.

But the youngster was not ready to give up.

Down 6-9 in the third, he clawed back with four consecutive points to snatch the game 11-9, keeping his side in the hunt heading into the final match.

Yashaswini grabbed the opportunity with both hands, defeating Krittwika Sinha Roy across three close games to propel U Mumba to their maiden UTT final.

For her efforts, Yashaswini won both the Indian Player of the Tie and the Shot of the Tie awards, while Szocs claimed the Foreign Player of the Tie honour.

Final Scores

U Mumba TT 8 beat Dempo Goa Challengers 7

Lilian Bardet lost to Harmeet Desai 0-3 (8-11, 4-11, 10-11)

Bernadette Szocs bt. Zeng Jian 2-1 (11-5, 11-9, 7-11)

Akash Pal/Bernadette Szocs bt. Harmeet Desai/Zeng Jian 2-1 (11-8, 8-11, 11-9)

Abhinandh PB lost to Vitor Ishiy 1-2 (6-11, 4-11, 11-9)

Yashaswini Ghorpade bt. Krittwika Sinha Roy 3-0 (11-9, 11-9, 11-10).