UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships: Kritika Saibo Edges Phalgun Gupta in Thriller as Four Young Champions Crowned in Kanpur

The next generation of Indian table tennis took centre stage at the UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships in Kanpur, with four contrasting finals producing new champions across the Under-11 and Under-13 categories.

The closest contest of the day came in the Youth Girls Under-11 final, where West Bengal’s Kritika Saibo overcame Haryana’s Phalgun Gupta 3-2 in a gripping battle. Kritika was forced to fight back twice after Phalgun took the lead, eventually holding her nerve to win 9-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9.

West Bengal enjoyed further success through Debanshu Chakraborty in the Under-11 Boys category and Ariv Dutta in the Under-13 Boys event, while Assam’s Ishani Gogoi emerged as the Under-13 Girls champion after an impressive straight-games victory. The finals showcased the depth of young talent emerging across Indian table tennis, with players from West Bengal, Haryana, Maharashtra, Assam and Delhi featuring prominently.

The Under-11 Girls final was the standout match of the day. Phalgun began strongly and took the opening game 11-9, putting Kritika under immediate pressure. The West Bengal paddler responded in the second game, edging another tight contest 11-9 to level the match.

However, Phalgun refused to give up control and once again moved ahead by winning the third game 11-9. With the title on the line, Kritika produced her best table tennis of the match. She dominated the fourth game 11-6 to force a decider before holding her composure in a tense fifth game. Kritika eventually closed out the contest 11-9 to complete a memorable comeback and lift the trophy.

The result underlined her ability to recover from difficult situations, having twice trailed in the final before finding a way back. Both players had reached the final without dropping a match in the semifinals. Kritika defeated West Bengal’s Varenya Sarkar 3-0, while Phalgun overcame Punjab’s Inaaya in straight games.

Although the semifinals were relatively comfortable, the final proved to be a completely different test.

Debanshu recovers to win Under-11 Boys title

West Bengal’s Debanshu Chakraborty also showed impressive recovery skills in the Under-11 Boys final. Maharashtra’s Rajvardhan Tiwari made a strong start, winning the opening game 11-7. He then pushed Debanshu all the way in the second, with the game reaching 10-10. That proved to be a crucial moment in the final.

Debanshu held his nerve to win the second game 12-10 and immediately took control of the match. He dominated the next two games 11-4, 11-4 to secure a 3-1 victory and claim the title. His path to the final had included one of the most dramatic semifinals of the day. Debanshu was pushed into a five-game battle by Haryana’s Granth Duklan. After falling behind, he produced a determined comeback and eventually edged the deciding game 12-10.

Rajvardhan, meanwhile, had reached the final with a comfortable straight-games victory over West Bengal’s Arjun Sen.

Ariv wins all-West Bengal Under-13 final

The Youth Boys Under-13 final produced an all-West Bengal contest between Ariv Dutta and Gem Mahalanabish. Ariv started the stronger of the two players, winning the opening game 11-6. Gem responded well in the second and levelled the match with an 11-7 win. However, Ariv regained momentum immediately. He won the third game 11-4 before closing out the fourth 11-9 to secure a 3-1 victory and become the Under-13 Boys champion.

Ariv had been tested in his semifinal against Rajdeep Biswas. After winning the first two games, he lost the third before edging a tense fourth game 12-10. Gem also came through a competitive semifinal, defeating Delhi’s Arunim Agarwal 3-0. While the scoreline suggested a straightforward victory, each of the three games was closely contested.

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Assam’s Ishani Gogoi completed the list of champions with a composed 3-0 victory over Delhi’s Khyati Pande in the Under-13 Girls final. The straight-games scoreline did not tell the full story. Ishani had to work hard for her 13-11 victory in the opening game before taking the second 11-7. The third game provided another major test, with Ishani trailing 2-8 before producing a remarkable comeback to win 12-10.

That recovery highlighted her composure under pressure and sealed the title. Her semifinal victory over Assam teammate Divija Paul was also competitive, with several games decided by narrow margins. Khyati reached the final after one of the day’s most dramatic comebacks. She defeated Maharashtra’s Mahika Susvirkar 3-2 after twice falling behind in the contest.

The Delhi player won the fourth game 13-11 to force a decider before taking the fifth 11-8. The UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships in Kanpur therefore produced four champions but several defining performances. For Kritika, Debanshu, Ariv and Ishani, the titles represent significant early milestones.

For Indian table tennis, the competitiveness across all four age groups offered another encouraging glimpse of the players who could shape the sport’s future.