As the Athlead Goa Challengers cruised to its second successive Ultimate Table Tennis final, besting the league topper PBG Bengaluru Smashers 8-4, it leaves one wondering whether Alvaro Robles and Co. lost the match even before taking to the table on Thursday.
Ahead of semifinal 1 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai, the Smashers’ order of play slotted the undefeated Lily Zhang in the last women’s singles fixture. The call raised a few eyebrows, considering the knockout stage fixtures are a race to eight points with the remainder of the tie getting suspended immediately after a team reaches the said mark. If the Smashers’ coach, four-time Olympian Elena Timina, was to be believed she only acted according to the wishes of her players.
The Challengers, meanwhile, got off the blocks very early while serving from the left. They say that in the face of great need, a champion rises to the occasion. And the Challengers found their gladiator in Mihai Bobocica. The Italian, who had a below-par showing in the league, was to go up against the indomitable Robles.
And it was evident from the very start that Bobocica had burnt the midnight oil to complete his homework. In the first two games, he made sure he didn’t send in even one serve deep into his opponent’s end. And that ensured Robles stayed on his toes, quite literally, during the exchanges.
Bobocica, ranked 221 in the world, started living dangerously in the second game, targeting the corners and, fortunately for the Challengers, Lady Luck decided to shine on him on each of those occasions. World No. 28 Robles, who hadn’t dropped a single game in his last two matches lost two on the spin to fall for the first time this season.
Manika Batra’s half-long serves, meanwhile, didn’t let Yangzi Liu breathe in their first game. The Indian paddler’s twiddling technique, wherein she switches between the forehand and backhand before one can bat an eyelid, even while loading up for her service seemed to get on the Aussie’s nerves.
But Liu slowly started crawling her way out of the hole Manika dug for her, sending her serves a tad longer, which eventually saw her conversion rate go up to 60 percent from the erstwhile 14.
With all to play for in the third game, Liu started right from where she left, frustrating Manika to a great extent. At one point, when the Indian paddler misplaced a slice, she shot a questioning look at Timina in the dugout as if to say she was trying everything but in vain.
Manika and Robles, their morale seemingly shattered, had to shake off their disappointment and regroup for the mixed doubles against Liu and Harmeet Desai shortly after.
The Challengers, who had failed to convert an overwhelming 75 per cent of their golden point opportunities this season, gifted the last point once again in the first game.
The Smashers’ left-right-handed combination continued dictating terms in the second game. Manika took the game up a notch to unleash the chop, a defensive shot that imparts underspin to force an error from the opponent, a manoeuvre she is not known for. And as was expected, Harmeet and Liu weren’t ready for it.
Robles’ effective communication with Manika using hand signs from under the table saw the pair successfully save five game points. But the Challengers eventually got to heave a sigh of relief at 11-9. As Harmeet started to saunter off the court, he knew he had a job to complete.
Facing him was Jeet Chandra, who had brought forth the faults in star Achanta Sharath Kamal, earlier this season. The 24-year-old, who has been named in the reserve squad for the upcoming Asian Championships in Astana, tried hard to take a game off the experienced Harmeet but the Challengers skipper ate and left no crumbs with his pinpoint placements.
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