Payas Jain Stuns Sathiyan Gnanasekaran at WTT Star Contender Chennai 2025
Exciting Day at WTT Star Contender Chennai 2025
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], March 27: In a remarkable turn of events, former ITTF Youth World No. 1 (U-17) Payas Jain delivered a shocking upset on the first day of the World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender Chennai 2025 by eliminating Commonwealth and Asian Games medallist Sathiyan Gnanasekaran in the Men’s Singles Round of 64.
On the other hand, the top-seeded Japanese pair, Tomokazu Harimoto and Sora Matsushima, showcased their skills in the Men’s Doubles, while Miwa Harimoto and Miyuu Kihara mirrored their success in the Women’s Doubles, as reported by WTT.
Indian table tennis icon Achanta Sharath Kamal kicked off his farewell tournament with a confident victory over qualifier Anirban Ghosh, winning in straight games. He later teamed up with Snehit Suravajjula in the Men’s Doubles, triumphing over Australia’s Nicholas Lum and Finn Luu in a thrilling five-game match.
The WTT Star Contender Chennai 2025, presented by IndianOil, is organized by Stupa Sports Analytics and Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) under the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI). The event offers 600 ranking points for winners and a total prize pool of USD 275,000, featuring top players from around the globe.
In the Men’s Singles, the Gujarat trio of Manav Thakkar, Harmeet Desai, and Manush Shah made impressive starts. Manav and Harmeet both secured victories in straight games against qualifiers Divyansh Srivastava and Kim Taehyun, respectively. Wildcard Manush Shah, after a slow start, rallied to defeat Italian qualifier John Oyebode in a closely contested match.
In a thrilling all-Indian Women’s Singles match, Ayhika Mukherjee narrowly defeated her wildcard partner Sutirtha Mukherjee in a five-game battle. Ayhika’s defensive skills proved vital as she clinched the final game 12-10 to advance. Additionally, 15-year-old Syndrela Das and 14-year-old Divyanshi Bhowmick displayed remarkable resilience, both achieving stunning comebacks to win their respective matches.
The top-seeded Hong Kong duo Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem dominated the Mixed Doubles, winning in straight games. In the Women’s Doubles, Diya Chitale and Yashaswini Ghorpade overcame qualifiers Taneesha Kotecha and Sayali Wani. Earlier in the day, Ayhika and Sutirtha faced off but later teamed up for a Round of 16 clash, where they were surprisingly defeated by the wildcard duo of Sreeja Akula and Swastika Ghosh.
The tournament will proceed with the Main Draw on Friday across all five categories. Fans can catch the action live on SonyLiv for Table 1 and on WTT’s official YouTube channel for Tables 2, 3, and 4.
Select Results - Main Draw, Day 1
Men’s Singles (Round of 64)
Harmeet Desai (IND) Vs. Kim Taehyun (MLT) [WC] 3-0: 12-10, 11-5, 11-5
Manav Thakkar (IND) Vs. Divyansh Srivastava (IND) [Q] 3-0: 11-4, 11-7, 11-7
Manush Shah (IND) [WC] Vs. John Oyebode (ITA) [Q] 3-1: 11-13, 12-10, 13-11, 11-6
Payas Jain (IND) [Q] Vs. Sathiyan Gnanasekaran (IND) 3-1: 11-8, 2-11, 11-8, 11-3
Achanta Sharath Kamal (IND) Vs. Anirban Ghosh (IND) [Q] 3-0: 11-7, 11-9, 12-10
Women’s Singles (Round of 64)
Ayhika Mukherjee (IND) Vs. Sutirtha Mukherjee (IND) [WC] 3-2: 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 8-11, 12-10
Kavya Bhatt (IND) [Q] Vs. Wong Hoi Tung (HKG) 3-1: 11-8, 8-11, 11-6, 11-6
Zhu Chengzhu (HKG) Vs. Yoo Yerin (KOR) [WC] 3-0: 11-6, 11-8, 11-6
Jieni Shao (POR) Vs. Barbora Balazova (SVK) 3-1: 11-7, 11-8, 11-13, 11-9
Huang Yu-Jie (TPE) Vs. Yashaswini Ghorpade (IND) 3-0: 11-9, 11-6, 11-7
Divyanshi Bhowmick (IND) [Q] Vs. Giorgia Piccolin (ITA) 3-2: 13-15, 11-9, 9-11, 11-1, 11-6
Syndrela Das (IND) [Q] Vs. Suhana Saini (IND) [WC] 3-2: 9-11, 5-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-8
Men’s Doubles (Round of 16)
Tomokazu Harimoto (JPN)/Sora Matsushima (JPN) [1] [WC] Vs. Anirban Ghosh (IND)/Sarth Mishra (IND) [Q] 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 11-8
Achanta Sharath Kamal (IND)/Snehit Suravajjula (IND) [WC] Vs. Nicholas Lum (AUS)/Finn Luu (AUS) 3-2: 11-6, 7-11, 13-11, 6-11, 11-9
Lim Jong-hoon (KOR)/An Jae-hyun (KOR) [3] Vs. Abhinandh Pradhivadhi (IND)/Preyesh Suresh (IND) [Q] 3-2: 12-10, 11-5, 7-11, 9-11, 11-6
Manush Shah (IND)/Manav Thakkar (IND) [2] Vs. Harmeet Desai (IND)/Sathiyan Gnanasekaran (IND) [WC] 3-1: 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 11-7
Women’s Doubles (Round of 16)
Miwa Harimoto (JPN)/Miyuu Kihara (JPN) [3] Vs. Syndrela Das (IND)/Suhana Saini (IND) [WC] 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 11-8
Diya Chitale (IND)/Yashaswini Ghorpade (IND) Vs. Taneesha Kotecha (IND)/Sayali Wani (IND) [Q] 3-1: 11-8, 5-11, 12-10, 11-5
Ayhika Mukherjee (IND)/Sutirtha Mukherjee (IND) Vs. Sreeja Akula (IND)/Swastika Ghosh (IND) [WC] 3-1: 11-7, 11-13, 11-7, 12-10
Satsuki Odo (JPN)/Sakura Yokoi (JPN) vs Kong Tsz Lam (HKG)/Lee Hoi Man (HKG) [Q] 3-1: 11-7, 11-4, 9-11, 11-2
Shin Yu-bin (KOR)/Ryu Hanna (KOR) [Q] Vs. Lee Eun-hye (KOR)/Kim Na-yeong (KOR) 3-2: 7-11, 11-2, 11-7, 6-11, 11-8
Zhu Chengzhu (HKG)/NG Wing Lam (HKG) [2] Vs. Radhapriya Goel (IND)/Nithya Mani (IND) [Q] 3-1: 6-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-7
Mixed Doubles (Round of 16)
Akash Pal (IND)/Poymantee Baisya (IND) [Q] Vs. Nicholas Lum (AUS)/Zeng Jian (SGP) 3-1: 11-6, 11-7, 11-8
Maharu Yoshimura (JPN)/Odo Satsuki (JPN) [Q] Vs. Harmeet Desai (IND)/Yashaswini Ghorpade (IND) 3-0: 11-6, 11-2, 11-8
Manush Shah (IND)/Diya Chitale (IND) [4] Vs. Ankur Bhattacharjee (IND)/Ayhika Mukherjee (IND) [Q] 3-0: 11-4, 12-10, 11-7
Sora Matsushima (JPN)/Miwa Harimoto (JPN) [3] Vs. Manav Thakkar (IND)/Manika Batra (IND) [WC] 3-0: 11-9, 11-2, 11-8
Wong Chun Ting (HKG)/Doo Hoi Kem (HKG) [1] Vs. Yiu Kwan To (HKG)/NG Wing Lam (HKG) 3-0: 11-6, 11-4, 11-9.