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In Match 8 of Ultimate Table Tennis 2023, Bengaluru Smashers edged past Chennai Lions by 8-7 to open their account on Thursday, July 20.
Bengaluru Smashers had an excellent start to the tie as Kirill Gerassimenko defeated Sharath Kamal in the first match. Kirill won both games via Golden Point, while Sharath Kamal won the second game by 11-7.
The fan-favorite Manika Batra did not disappoint as the ace paddler defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee 2-1 to extend Bengaluru Smashers' lead. She won the first game convincingly by 11-6. Sutirtha took the next game via Golden Point, but Manika bounced back to seal the match with an 11-8 win in the final game.
The mixed doubles tie also went Bengaluru Smashers' way. Kirill/Manika defeated Sharath/Yangzi to take the match 6-11, 11-9,11-7. Bengaluru led the tie by 6-3 after the third match. Benedikt Duda kept Chennai Lions in the hunt by winning the men's singles contest. Though he dropped the first game, he bagged the next two to win by 9-11, 11-9, 11-7.
After the fourth match, Chennai Lions were 5-7 and needed to win all their games to take the tie. However, Natalia Bajor held her nerves to win the first game against Yangzi Liu to seal the tie. Yangzi had a positive finish to the match, as she won the next two games to win the match.
Ultimate Table Tennis 2023 Points Table: Updated after Match 8
After Match 8 of Ultimate Table Tennis 2023, Goa Challengers stays at the top of the points table with two tie wins from three. They have won ten matches, three ahead of second-placed U Mumba TT.
U Mumba TT has two wins and a loss from their three ties. They have won seven matches and have 24 tie points. Chennai Lions stays in the third spot in the Ultimate Table Tennis points table after today's loss against Bengaluru Smashers. They have eight match wins and 24 game points.
Bengaluru Smashers jumps to the fourth spot with today's win as they finally opened the account after losing the first two ties. They have five match wins and 18 game points. Dabang Delhi TTC and Puneri Paltan TTC also have one win, but they have played only two matches. They find themselves at the bottom half of the table at the moment.
