UTT 2025: Kolkata Thunderblades start with win over Chennai Lions; U Mumba down Ahmedabad SG Pipers

U Mumba TT bounced back in style, claiming a commanding 10-5 win over Western rivals Ahmedabad SG Pipers in the 2025 Ultimate Table Tennis on Monday, driven by standout performances from World No. 12 Bernadette Szocs, Lilian Bardet, and Yashaswini Ghorpade.

In the earlier tie, Kolkata ThunderBlades registered an 8-7 win on their league debut against Season 3 champions Stanley’s Chennai Lions.

The tie opened with Bardet continuing his strong form, edging Snehit Suravajjula 2-1 after dominating the first game and holding firm in a tense second.

Yashaswini, making her first appearance of the season, then delivered a composed 2-1 win over Ayhika Mukherjee, storming through the decider 11-4 after building an 8-0 lead.

The momentum stayed with Mumbai as Szocs and Akash Pal teamed up to win the mixed doubles 2-1, holding off a brief comeback from Ricardo Walther and Ayhika.

Akash nearly sealed the tie with an upset in the fourth match, taking the first game against World No. 34 Walther before the German rallied to level the score.

But Szocs shut the door in the final clash, sweeping Giorgia Piccolin 3-0 to clinch the tie.

Yashaswini and Szocs claimed the Indian and the Foreign Player of the Tie awards, respectively, while Ayhika took home the Shot of the Tie honour for a smashing forehand drive in her singles contest.

Kolkata Thunderblades beat Chennai Lions

India’s 18-year-old prodigy Ankur Bhattacharjee produced the upset of the night, blanking Olympian and World No. 55 Kirill Gerassimenko 3-0 to power debutants Kolkata Thunderblades to a thrilling win over Chennai Lions in their season opener.

Ankur’s backhand was in full flow, delivering nine winners in Game 1 alone. He edged the second on golden point and sealed the third with authority, earning both Indian Player of the Tie and Shot of the Tie honours.

Chennai hit back through World No. 36 Fan Siqi, the league’s highest-valued player, who marked her debut with a 3-0 win over Selena Selvakumar. She then teamed up with Payas Jain to take the mixed doubles, though Kolkata snatched a game late.

Chennai’s hopes faded as Aruna Quadri edged Payas 2-1, and Adriana Diaz sealed the tie with a 3-0 win over Poymantee Baisya. Fan was named Foreign Player of the Tie.