Falcons face Maharashtra in opener
UTT will see Indian stars Manika Batra, Mouma Das, Sharath Kamal and Anthony Amalraj in action for over 18 days of competition
India’s 2018 Commonwealth Games heroes and top paddlers from around the world will showcase their skills in the second edition of Ultimate Table Tennis that gets under way in Pune from June 14.
Defending champions Falcons TTC take on Maharashtra United in the season opener.
UTT will see Indian stars Manika Batra, Mouma Das, Madhurika Patkar Sharath Kamal, Anthony Amalraj, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty, Pooja Sahasrabudhe and Sutirtha Mukherjee in action for over 18 days of competition.
Frenchman Simon Gauzy ( world no. 12) and Hong Kong’s Doo Hoi Kem ( world no. 13) are among the top ranked foreign players in the league that features six teams — Empowerji Challengers, Dabang Smashers TTC, Falcons TTC, Maharashtra United, RP- SG Mavericks and Warriors TTC.
During the league phase spread over 15 days, each team will play the other once with six ties each in Pune and Delhi. Kolkata will play host to three league ties besides the semi- finals and the grand finale on July 1. Maharashtra United, whose roster boasts the likes of Amalraj along with Swede Kristian Karlsson ( world no. 18) and Romanian Elizabeta Samara ( world no. 19), face a stiff challenge from defending champions Falcons TTC, who are spearheaded by Sanil Shetty and another top Swede in Matilda Ekholm ( world no. 30) on the inaugural day at the Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune.
Delhi fans get an opportunity to root for homegrown star Manika as Dabang Smashers will lock horns with RP- SG Mavericks in the first tie at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex.
The proceedings at Kolkata’s Netaji Indoor Stadium begin with the Empowerji Challengers facing Smashers.
After the league stage, the first and fourth- placed teams will play the first semi- final on June 29 while the second and thirdplaced teams meet in the second semi- final the next day. The final is slated for July 1.
The winners will be richer by ` 1 crore while the runners- up will bag ` 75 lakh. The losing semi- finalists will receive ` 50 lakh each.