Wu Yang played the waiting game to perfection, trapping world No. 9 Han Ying in her web. A stunning upset by the former emerged as the highlight on the final day of the inaugural Ultimate Table Tennis.
Wu plotted her way to an enticing 11-10, 11-4, 11-8 victory, her second women’s singles win in the title clash. Six points from her boosted Falcons TTC to a 14-9 victory over Shaze Challengers.
Sanil Shetty stuck to his strengths against Li Ping in the opening singles match and won a game against the higher-ranked Chinese. Later, Sanil, paired in the mixed doubles with Lee Ho Ching, pulled off three games against Soumyajit Ghosh and Petrissa Solja to give a 7-2 lead for the Falcons.
Mouma faced a difficult challenge in the second singles, constantly having to avoid the traps set by Wu Yang’s chops at the other end. But the lanky Chinese hardly relented. Her mastery of the defensive game enabled her to a 3-0 win. Trailing by five points, the weight of responsibility was on captain Andrej Garcina's shoulders for the Challengers.
The Croatian went all-out to bag the first game against Englishman Liam Pitchford, who regained control in the second game to draw level. Garcina bagged the third game against his determined rival to narrow the lead to 4-8 and give Challengers a taste of victory. The crowd in the stands enjoyed thundering shots amidst long rallies as both teams got into their strides, setting the stage for the best match of Sunday night, featuring Han Ying versus Wu Yang.
Han and Wu kept teammates and fans engrossed in the first game, bringing out the delights and subtleties in the defensive game. The first game went Wu’s way after a marathon rally at golden point (10-all). The chop and wait tactic played out in the second game, also going to Wu. Challengers found their voice when young Soumyajit Ghosh won the first game against Liam Pitchford but the latter grabbed the next two to increase Falcons' lead.
Score: Falcons TTC beat Shazen Challengers 14-9
Sanil Shetty lost to Li Ping 1-2 (9-11, 10-11, 11-7). WS: Wu Yang bt Mouma Das 3-0 (11-6, 11-2, 11-3). XD: Sanil Shetty & Lee Ho Ching bt Soumyajit Ghosh & Petrissa Solja 3-0 (11-9, 11-3, 11-8). MS: Liam Pitchford lost to Andrej Garcina 1-2 (11-2, 10-11, 11-7). WS: Wu Yang bt Hang Ying 3-0 (11-10, 11-4, 11-8). MS: Liam Pitchford bt Soumyajit Ghosh 2-1 (5-11, 11-10, 11-7). WS: Han Ying bt Sutirtha Mukherjee 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 11-7). MS: Par Gerell 1 vs Li Ping 1 (9-11, 11-9).
Ninth singles tie not played. First team to reach 14 points is winner.
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