India’s young paddlers battle for glory as U-15 table tennis tournament enters playoffs

Chennai, March 21 (IANS) The Dream Sports Championship U15 Table Tennis Tournament enters its decisive knockout phase on Friday, with the nation’s emerging talents set to battle for supremacy over an action-packed weekend that combines high-stakes competition with world-class training opportunities.

Friday’s quarter-final matches promise compelling contests. In the girls’ division, Arya Redkar faces Tanishka Kalbhairav while Shreya Dhar takes on Myraa Sangelkar. The boys’ quarter-finals feature Trishal Raj Kumar against Kantanut Petsunthad, followed by Albin Ingestrom versus Atharva Nawarange.

Saturday’s semi-finals will begin with the first girls’ match featuring the Redkar/Kalbhairav winner against top seed Divyanshi Bhowmick. The second semi-final will see the Dhar/Sangelkar victor challenge Ananya Muralidharan.

The Boys’ semi-finals commence with the Raj Kumar/Petsunthad winner facing Sahil Rawat, while the second semi-final pits the Ingestrom/Nawarange victor against Ritvik Gupta. The grand finale will take place on Saturday evening with the boys’ championship match immediately followed by the girls’ final.

Before the competitive action on Friday, participants engaged with table tennis legend Sharath Kamal in an interactive morning session, followed by a sports science workshop conducted by fitness expert Dheeraj.

Meanwhile, Thursday and Friday also saw a closed-door training session specifically organised for players eliminated in earlier rounds, held by German coach Chris Pfeiffer, who is a part of Sharath Kamal’s academy. Olympian Sreeja Akula will conduct a special Q&A session with the players before the finals on Saturday, sharing insights from her international career.

–IANS

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