Arya bags title, Dhyan wins hearts
Vadodara 4, August : Third seed Arya Kataria defeated top seed Malav Panchal to be crowned U-15 boys champion at the The IOCL 5th Gujarat State Ranking Table Tennis Tournament 2023 here at Sama Sports Complex. Second seed Sujal Kukadia finished third in the event.
The tournament scheduled from August 3 to 6 is held under the aegis of Gujarat State Table Tennis Association, is organized by Table Tennis Association of Baroda and is sponsored by UTT, GAIL and SAG.
The U-15 Boys’ final was an All-Ahmedabad affair on the second day of the competition. Malav Panchal, unfortunately looked out of colour as Arya dominated the table with some wonderful winners. He was aggressive in his service as well during 11-3 12-10 11-8 victory. This was the second title of the season for Arya, having won the opening in Rajkot.
In the process Arya also halted Malav’s juggernaut. The top seed had won back to back three titles before coming to Vadodara.
Earlier in the semifinals Arya had beaten Sujal Kukadia 13-11 11-8 11-5 while Malav got the better of Abhilaksh Patel of Ahmedabad 11-7 11-5 7-11 11-6. Bhavnagar-based Sujal won the 3rd place encounter against Abhilaksh 11-6, 10-12, 8-11 11-8, 11-9.
Earlier in the day, Dhyan Vasavada’s emphatic win over fifth seed Hridan Shah of Ahmedabad in the pre-quarters of the U-15 boys won the hearts of the audience. The local boy, Dhyan, didn’t give up and bounced back twice in the match during his 8-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9, 11-7 win over Hridan.
Unfortunately for Dhyan, he lost the momentum as he lost his Quarterfinal match against Abhilaksh Patel 11-6 11-7 11-8.
Meanwhile, the U-17 girls event also got underway with the qualifying rounds.
Results:
Sub-Junior U-15 Boys Pre-Quater Final:
Sujal Kukardia (2; BVN) bt Vansh Sundarani (BRD) 11-3, 11-4, 11-6; Samarth Shekhawat (6; SRT) bt Ved Panchal (11; BRD) 15-13, 12-10, 11-9; Dhyan Vasavada (BRD) bt Hridan Shah (5; AHD) 8-11, 11-5, 8-,11, 11-9, 11-7; Malav Panchal(1; AHD) bt Jenil Patel (16; AHD) 11-8, 11-9, 11-5.
Sub-Junior U-15 Boys Quater Final:
Malav Panchal (1; AHD) bt Pavan Kumar (SRT) 11-4, 11-4, 11-8; Abhilaksh Patel (4; AHD) bt Dhyan Vasavada (BRD) 11-6, 11-7, 11-8; Arya Kataria (3; AHD) bt Samarth Shekhawat (6; SRT) 6-11, 11-13, 11-6, 11-9, 11-4; Sujal Kukadiya (2; BVN) bt Manav Mehta (10; SRT) 11-3, 11-6, 11-5;
Sub-Junior U-15 Boys Semi Final:
Malav Panchal (1; AHD) bt Abhilaksh Patel (4; AHD) 11-7, 11-5, 7-11, 11-6; Arya Kataria (3; AHD) bt Sujal Kukadia (2; BVN) 13-11, 11-8, 11-5.
Sub-Junior U-15 Boys 3rd & 4th Position:
Sujal Kukadia (2; BVN) bt Abhilaksh Patel (4; AHD) 11-6, 10-12, 8-11 11-8, 11-9;
Sub-Junior U-15 Boys Final:
Arya Kataria(3; AHD) bt Malav Panchal(1; AHD) 11-3, 12-10, 11-8