Gandhidham: West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu asserted their dominance with commanding performances to book their places in the semifinals of the Under-15 boys’ team event at the UTT 87th Inter-State Sub-Junior and Cadet National Table Tennis Championships, being played at the M. P. Mittra Indoor Stadium in the Haresh Sangtani Sports Complex.
Gujarat scripted a significant milestone in their campaign, storming into the medal round for the first time in the championships’ history with a commanding 3-0 victory over PSPBA. The home side displayed remarkable composure and cohesion, much to the delight of the local supporters. Vivaan Dave led from the front with a dominant straight-games win, setting the tone early, while Dev Bhatt reinforced Gujarat’s control with a confident performance despite dropping a game. Their doubles pairing of Vivaan and Dev then combined seamlessly to close out the tie in straight games, underlining Gujarat’s growing stature and all-round strength. Their emphatic progression not only secured a semifinal berth but also guaranteed a historic medal.
Earlier, West Bengal delivered one of the most clinical displays of the quarterfinals, blanking Rajasthan 3-0. Aditya Das set the tone with a straight-games win over Tushar Ramchandani, while Rishaan Chattopadhyay maintained the momentum with another convincing victory against Aarav Acharya. The doubles pair of Aditya and Rishaan then sealed the tie efficiently despite a brief resistance from the Rajasthan duo.
Maharashtra was equally authoritative in its 3-0 triumph over Telangana, though the opening match saw a brief challenge. Nilay Pattekar recovered after dropping the first game to overcome Bolishetty Yashvasin, and Prateek Tulsani edged out Harshith Bachupalli in a hard-fought five-game encounter to ensure Maharashtra’s smooth passage.
Tamil Nadu faced the stiffest resistance among the quarterfinal winners but emerged 3-1 against NCOE in a gripping contest. Akash Rajavelu gave Tamil Nadu an early lead, but K. Akshay Bhushan’s loss to Somdev Sengupta allowed NCOE to level. The doubles pair of Aakshay and J.N. Sanjey Arwindh restored the advantage before Akash returned to outlast Somdev in a tense five-game match, clinching the decisive point.
Earlier, the pre-quarterfinals largely followed expected lines, with West Bengal, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Gujarat recording comfortable 3-0 wins over Delhi, Odisha, Karnataka, and Goa, respectively. Rajasthan, NCOE, and Tamil Nadu also progressed without much trouble, while PSPBA outplayed Punjab 3-0 to complete the quarterfinal lineup.
The winners play the semifinals later tonight.
Results:
U-15 Youth Boys: Quarterfinals: West Bengal bt Rajasthan 3-0 (Aditya Das bt Tushar Ramchandani 11-8, 12-10, 11-8, Rishaan Chattopadhyay bt Aarav Acharya 11-9, 11-9, 11-9, Aditya/Rishaan bt Aarav/Tushar 11-6, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8); Maharashtra bt Telangana 3-0 (Nilay Pattekar bt Bolishetty Yashvasin 8-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-5, Prateek Tulsani bt Harshith Bachupalli 11-13, 11-5, 11-8, 6-11, 11-8); Gujarat bt PSPBA 3-0 (Vivaan Dave bt Viren Patil 11-4, 11-9, 11-5, Dev Bhatt bt S. Karmeghakannan 11-9, 11-7, 2-11, 11-6, Vivaan/Dev bt Viren/Karmeghakannan 11-9, 14-12, 11-7); Tamil Nadu bt NCOE 3-1 (Akash Rajavelu bt Samriddho Bhattacharya 11-5, 11-8, 10-12, 11-9, K. Akshay Bhushan lost to Somdev Sengupta 11-8, 7-11, 10-12, 3-11, Aakshay/J.N. Sanjey Arwindhb t Samriddho/Somdev 11-6, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, Akash bt Somdev 6-11, 8-11, 11-4, 12-10, 11-9).
Pre-quarterfinals: West Bengal bt Delhi 3-0; Rajasthan bt Madhya Pradesh 3-1; Telangana bt Odisha 3-0; Maharashtra bt Karnataka 3-0; Gujarat bt Goa 3-0; PSPBA bt Punjab 3-0; NCOE bt Uttar Pradesh 3-1; Tamil Nadu bt Haryana 3-0.
