UTT 2024: U Mumba TT face Chennai Lions; Dabang Delhi TTC play Puneri Paltan TT in double header
Friday’s action will see the return of double headers, with Dabang Delhi TTC’s bout against Puneri Paltan Table Tennis following up the earlier clash.
In-form teams, Bengal Warriors and Dabang Delhi played out an entertaining draw, with both teams finishing on 30 points in the second match of the day at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.
K Prapanjan and Naveen Kumar clinched Super 10s for Bengal and Delhi respectively in a high-intensity encounter as both teams missed out on an opportunity to go top of the League table.
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A raid storm was expected prior to the match as both sides had been among the finest raiding units in the Season 7. And true to their name, Dabang started with a bang, opening their account with a super raid and inflicting the first all-out of the match in the 5th minute.
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Raiders Chandran Ranjit and Naveen Kumar looked quite aggressive for the Delhi side in the initial minutes but Bengal slowly clawed their way back in the mid portions of the half.
But Dabang ended the first half, just like how they started, with the team pulling off a super tackle, courtesy a clever review, in the dying minutes to build a healthy lead.
The first half ended 18-11 in favour of the Delhi side.
Delhi started the second half on a high but a 4-point game with 12 minutes remaining in the match — a super-tackle by Jeeva Kumar and then a two-point raid by Sukesh Hegde — reduced the gap between the teams to four points.
The turnaround was complete when Bengal clinched their first all-out of the match with less than seven minutes remaining in the match. Delhi’s unsuccessful raid percentage increased in the second half while Bengal improved with Prapanjan pulling off a Super 10 with 4 minutes remaining.
Naveen Kumar was in no mood to give up the match though and ensured the match remained close, securing another Super 10 (his sixth of the season) in the process.
A do-or-die raid in the final minute opened an opportunity for Bengal to clinch the match but their initial joy was cut short when a review proved Bengal’s raider had fallen short in his attempt.
The match ended in a tie, a fair reflection of the closeness of the contest.
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