Panchkula: Punjab’s rising star Trijal Vohra stamped his authority in the U13 boys’ singles field, storming to a commanding 3-0 victory over West Bengal’s Gem Mahalanabish in the final to clinch the glittering trophy on day three of the fourth UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships at the Tau Devi Lal Multipurpose Indoor Stadium today.
Trijal, who had appeared to be fluent in contact during the knockout round, maintained his composure in the summit clash, dampening Gem’s early aggressiveness and finishing the fight 11-4, 11-8, 11-9. Although Gem increased his game game by game, he ended up finishing second.
The win capped a clinical run that saw the young Punjab player lose just one game in the knockout stages.
But while the boys’ final was one-way, the U13 girls’ semi-final delivered all the drama the format has to offer. Haryana’s Avni Dua stole the limelight with a comfortable 3-2 win over Karnataka’s Sakshya Santosh, surviving a shaky fight to secure her maiden national final berth. She will tomorrow challenge West Bengal’s Titash Chatterjee, who edged out state mate Debanshi Chakraborty in another thriller, also with a 3-2 lead after a series of volatile rallies.
With both girls’ semifinals going the distance and the pendulum swinging wildly in each game, spectators were treated to fierce comebacks, long rallies and gutsy shots – a testament to the depth and spirit of the U-13 division.
In stark contrast, the boys’ last four games have seen consecutive wins for Trijal and Gem, although Trijal had to dig deep in a lengthy second game against Maharashtra’s Aakarshan Yadav to stay on track.
Earlier, the quarterfinals in both legs set the tone for an intense day, with the boys battling it out in two five-game duels – including a nerve-calming win for Soumik Deb and Gem’s determined turnaround – while the girls showed strong results from Avni, Titash and others heading into the penultimate leg.
Meanwhile, tomorrow’s focus will also turn to the main draw for the U15 boys and girls, which begins earlier in the day following the conclusion of group qualifiers. With the qualifiers now determined, the U-15 boards are ready for another round of high-profile youth action, with the top seeds heading into battle in the hunt for a place in the rankings.
Results:
Youth Boys U-13: Final: Trial Vohra (Pun) bt Gem Mahalanabish (WB) 11-4, 11-8, 11-9.
Semphinale: Gem (WB) bt Soomic Deb (WB) 11-5, 11-9, 11-5; Trijal (pun) bt Arcarshing European (mah) 11-4, 12-10, 11-2.
Quarterfinals: Soumik vs Rajdeep Biswas (WB) 11-8, 11-13, 7-11, 11-8, 12-10; Gem bt Dev Bhatt (Guj) 9-11, 11-13, 11-9, 11-7, 11-8; Trijal vs. Hardik Kumar (Del) 11-8, 11-4, 11-6; Aakarshan bt Suchet Dharennavar (Kar) 10-12, 11-9, 14-12, 11-3.
Before the quarterfinals: Soumik against Raghav Mahajan (Mah) 3:0; Rajdeep vs Krish Vinod (TN) 3-0; Dev bt Talasila Maanvith (AP) 3-1; Gem against H. Tanish (TN) 3-0; Trijal bt Biprojeet Paul (Asm) 3-1; Hardik vs Lakshya Kumar (UP) 3-1; Looking against Rijayam Mitra (WB) 3-1; Aakarshan vs Mohak Mishra (Del) 3-1.
Youth Girls U-13: Semi-final: Titash Chatterjee (WB) vs Debanshi Chakraborty (WB) 11-8, 7-11, 15-13, 7-11, 11-9; Avni Dua (Har) bt Sakshya Santosh (Kar) 13-11, 11-8, 13-15, 13-11, 11-8.
Quarterfinals: Debnanshi vs Siddhi Singh (Del) 11-5, 11-6, 11-8; Titash bt Shanaya Tyagi (Del) 14-12, 11-3, 11-3; Avni bt NK Hrshitha (Ker) 13-11, 11-7, 5-11, 12-10; Sakshya bt Ishani Gogoi (Asm) 11-9, 11-6, 11-7.
Pre-quarterfinals: Debanshi vs. Ambati Pooja (TN) 3:0; Siddhi vs Samaya Pandey (CG) 3-2; Shanaya vs. Grace Sukhija (Del) 3:0; Titash against Avanthika Doupati (Telg) 3:0; Harshitha bt Divija Paul (Asm) 3-2; Avni bt Avni Janghu (Har) 3-1; Ishani vs Riparna Saha (WB) 3-1; Sakshya vs Mihika Udupa (Kar) 3-1.
