Manav Thakkar and Yashaswini Ghorpade, each representing the Petroleum Sports activities Promotion Board (PSPB), clinched their maiden males’s and girls’s singles titles on the 87th Senior Nationwide Desk Tennis Championship right here on Saturday.
Even earlier than the finals started on the Abhay Prashal Indoor Stadium, it was clear that new nationwide champions can be topped in each classes. Prime seed Manav lived as much as expectations, halting fifteenth seed Jeet Chandra’s spectacular run within the males’s singles ultimate. Moments earlier, eighth seed Yashaswini edged previous third seed Syndrela Das in a gripping all-PSPB ladies’s ultimate that went the gap.
Manav’s consistency proved too robust for Jeet in a contest between two bespectacled paddlers. Although Jeet produced some audacious winners within the third sport, Manav maintained management all through the 35-minute encounter to cross the road with none fuss. After shedding his solely earlier Nationwide Championship ultimate seven years in the past, Manav, the World No. 33, gave a high-five to his sparring accomplice Siddhesh Pande for ending his lengthy wait.
The ladies’s ultimate, in distinction, was a fluctuating contest. Yashaswini relied on her management, notably along with her long-pimpled backhand, whereas 16-year-old Syndrela showcased her attacking prowess with highly effective backhand winners, repeatedly staging comebacks.
At 8-8 within the deciding seventh sport, Yashaswini pivoted to her forehand to supply a vital winner — a second that proved decisive. The Bengaluru paddler went on to seal a gruelling 75-minute match and celebrated in model with a Ben Shelton-inspired gesture for the second consecutive day.
Earlier, Syndrela had upset defending champion Diya Chitale in a tense semifinal, whereas Yashaswini progressed comfortably previous Suhana Saini.
Together with the trophies and medals, each Manav and Yashaswini acquired prize cash of ₹3.52 lakh every, whereas runners-up Jeet and Syndrela earned ₹1.76 lakh apiece.
The outcomes: Males’s Singles: Ultimate: Manav Thakkar (PSPB) bt Jeet Chandra (RSPB) 11-2, 11-4, 6-11, 11-9, 11-3.
Semifinals: Manav bt Harmeet Desai (PSPB) 11-8, 11-5, 11-7, 11-6; Jeet bt Ronit Bhanja (RSPB) 11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 11-4, 7-11, 7-11, 11-7.
Girls’s Singles: Ultimate: Yashaswini Ghoropde (PSPB) bt Syndrela Das (PSPB) 11-6, 12-14, 11-5, Sept. 11, 13-11, 6-11, 11-8.
Semifinals: Yashaswini bt Suhana Saini (Har) 6-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-8, 11-3; Syndrela bt Diya Chitale (RBI) 7-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-9, 3-11, 3-11, 13-11.
Combined Doubles: Ultimate: Ankur Bhattacharjee (WB) & Suhana Saini (Har) bt Aniket Bose & Sampriti Roy (WB) 11-9, 11-7, Sept. 11, 13-15, 12-10.
Semifinals: Aniket & Sampriti bt Ronit Bhanja & Kaushani Nath (RSPB) 7-11, 11-9, 12-10, 8-11, 11-7; Ankur & Suhana bt Akash Pal & Poymantee Baisya (RSPB) 11-4, 8-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-9.
Revealed – March 21, 2026 07:40 pm IST
