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The fourth edition of Ultimate Table Tennis began on July 13. The league, which is back after three years, witnessed Chennai Lions taking on Puneri Paltan TT on Day 1.
The defending champions had a positive start as they went past Puneri Paltan TT by 10-5. The Indian paddler Achanta Sharath Kamal dominated the day with a win in the Men's Singles and Mixed Doubles.
Achanta Sharath Kamal and Omar Assar met in Match one of the day. Sharath Kamal won the first game by winning the golden point, lost the next one and took the Game Three to win by 11-10, 9-11, 11-6. Chennai Lions' Yangzi Liu defeated Archana Kamath by 11-5, 11-10, 10-11 in the second match to take the overall game-point lead to 4-2.
The Mixed Doubles went to the Chennai Lions as well. Sharath Kamal and Yangzi Liu won all three games against Omar Assar and Archana Kamath to take their lead to 7-2. Benedikt Duda and Manush Shah had a tough fight in the Match four. However, the Chennai Lions paddler edged past Manush Shah by 11-9, 11-7, 7-11.
This was the only match which wasn't a completely one-sided affair. In the first three matches, Chennai Lions dominated completely. The 5th match belonged to Puneri Paltan TT's Hana Matelova.
In the final match of the day, Puneri Paltan TT ended the tie on a high note, as Hana Matelova defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee by 11-6, 5-11, 11-2. The defending champions finished the day with a 10-5 win over Puneri Paltan TT.
Ultimate Table Tennis 2023 Points Table: Updated after Match 1
Though it is early in the League, this win certainly gives a huge boost to the defending champions Chennai Lions. The ace paddler Sharath Kamal was the star for Chennai Lions, whereas, Hana Matelova provided the only win for Puneri Paltan TT today. After today's match, Chennai Lions are at the top of the table, while Puneri Paltan TT holds the second spot.
