Manika Batra, Natalia Bajor Power Bengaluru Smashers’ Win Over Puneri Paltan In Ultimate Table Tennis Season 4

Manika Batra and Natalia Bajor helped Bengaluru Smashers beat Puneri Paltan 8-7 in their Ultimate Table Tennis Season 4 clash at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex here on Sunday.

Puneri Paltan needed only a game to win when world No. 42 Bajor entered the last match — women’s singles — of the tie and defeated Archana Kamath 3-0 (8-11, 8-11, 9-11) to keep Bengaluru Smashers alive in the league.

The first game saw a thrilling 11-8 win for Bajor, who played accurate backhands coupled with powerful forehands to take the second game by the same scoreline. The Polish paddler kept her nerve in the decider and won it 11-9 with her pinpoint shots.

Earlier, Batra thumped Hana Matelova 2-1 in the second match of the tie to register her third women’s singles victory in the ongoing season.

The world No. 35 showed control on her backends early on to win the first game 11-9 before Matelova fought back to clinch the second 11-8. However, Batra pocketed the third game 11-6 as well as the match.

Bengaluru Smashers’ captain Kirill Gerassimenko beat Puneri Paltan’s star player Omar Assar 2-1 to give his side a winning start. Gerassimenko won the contest 11-8, 10-11, 10-11.

The 23rd-ranked Assar began the first game in aggressive mode and targeted the flanks to win it 11-8, before Kirill made a comeback to clinch the second game through a golden point.

The third game also went to the golden point, which went in the favour of Gerassimenko.

In the third match, a mixed doubles tie, Matelova and Manush Shah beat Batra and Gerassimenko 3-0, winning 11-9, 11-10, 11-4.

Manush then defeated Jeet Chandra 2-1 in the penultimate match, winning 11-9, 11-9, 7-11.