Even the best athletes wilt under pressure. This was on display as U Mumba’s overseas stars Quadri Aruna and Lily Zhang lost the plot against Puneri Paltan in a must-win match on Thursday.
Paltan, thanks to a superlative display by southpaw Manush Shah and Hana Matelova, overcame its fancied opponent to win the Maharashtra Derby 10-5 in the final league game of Season 4 and entered the Ultimate Table Tennis semifinal.
U Mumba, boasting the highest-ranked singles players in the world in both the men’s and women’s sections — was the favourite going into the contest.
But Manush, creating unusual angles primarily with his forehand top-spin shots, continued his sensational run to surprise World No. 17 Quadri Aruna as Paltan began the evening on a high.
Hana, riding high on confidence and boosted by an army of schoolkids cheering for the home team, stunned Lily Zhang in a battle that witnessed quite a few rallies.
With Paltan 4-2 ahead, Manush and Hana combined to win the mixed doubles against Manav Thakkar and Lily.
Omar Assar, Pune’s main singles player, sealed the deal in the fourth tie despite conceding a game to Manav.
RESULT
U Mumba TT lost to Puneri Paltan TT 5-10 (Quadri Aruna lost to Manush Shah 7-11, 11-8, 8-11; Lily Zhang lost to Hana Matelova 11-7, 10-11, 8-11; Manav Thakkar & Lily lost to Manush & Hana 8-11, 11-4, 5-11; Manav Thakkar lost to Omar Assar 11-8, 8-11, 5-11; Diya Chitale lost to Archana Kamath 11-8, 10-11, 5-11).
FINAL LEAGUE STANDINGS
Dabang Delhi TTC 43 points (5 ties); Chennai Lions 42 (5); Puneri Paltan TT 38 (5); Goa Challengers 36 (5); Bengaluru Smashers 35 (5); U Mumba TT 33 (5).
SEMIFINAL LINEUP
Dabang Delhi TTC vs Goa Challengers (Friday); U Mumba TT vs Puneri Paltan TT (7.30pm).
(This news is published through a syndicated feed courtesy SportsStar – The Hindu)
