Shazé Challengers did well to win Tie 12 of the CEAT UTT and get a foot into the semi-finals of the tournament, beating DHFL Maharashtra United 15-12.

The evening began with Shazé Challengers’ captain Andrej Gacina taking on Maharashtra United’s Harmeet Desai. Gacina secured a straightforward victory, winning in straight sets as he continues to grow in confidence through the tournament. He made light work of his opponent as Desai made a series of unforced errors to hand the first game to the Challengers.

Match 2 witnessed Mouma Das take on Fu Yu for a chance to stretch the lead for the Challengers. Das started very strong, relying on her big forehand smashes to pin Fu Yu on the back foot. The Portuguese, though, took the loss in her stride and came back strong, winning the next two sets 11-7, 11-7. The very same smashes that won Mouma Das the first game proved to be her downfall as she was lured into wrong shot-selection by Fu Yu’s experience, giving United two points.

Desai returned to the court in Match 3, pairing with Austrian Liu Jia to win the Match two games to one, making up for his first Match loss to an extent. They beat Petrissa Solja and Soumyajit Ghosh in the first two Games to pull the scores level, but Ghosh and Solja pulled up their socks and rallied back in Game 3 to see that the lead was still with the Challengers.

Gacina took on Joao Monteiro in a big-hitting Match 4 of the Tie. The most interesting Match up till this point, it was a treat for the audience as both athletes put on some powerful rallies on display. Gacina won this battle of power, winning 2-1, adding to his first Match win. Monteiro won a game back to keep United in the hunt for points.

Liu Jia finally turned the tables on Shazé Challengers, recording a clean sweep over Petrissa Solja in Match 5. Liu Jia strolled past her opponent in the first two games, but Petrissa pushed her back in Game 3. Liu Jia held on to counter the German’s big shots and kept cool under pressure to get the game to a Golden Point after trailing most of the time. Petrissa finally cracked as she could not return Liu Jia’s serve and give United the lead at 7-8.

Wong Chun Ting built on the momentum that Liu Jia set for their team, beating Soumyajit Ghosh 2-1 in Match 6. Ghosh almost caused an upset, winning Game 2 and looking well on course to winning Game 3 and take the Match. Wong Chun Ting had other plans though, as he produced a string of winners and went on to force a win over Ghosh, much to the Indian’s dismay. The resulting win sent DHFL Maharashtra United two points clear of their opponents.

Match 7 witnessed another clean sweep by a Challengers’ player as Han Ying brushed off Pooja Sahasrabudhe in straight sets. Pooja had no reply to the German’s game, being outclassed in every department as Han Ying won back the advantage for the Challengers, her victory putting them back ahead 11-10.

Li Ping and Wong Chun Ting took to the court for the Challengers and Maharashtra United respectively in Match 8. Wong Chun Ting looked unconvincing in his match against Ghosh and looked like he had a point to make as he came out strong, trouncing Li Ping 11-6 in the Game 1. Li Ping grabbed the second Game by the scruff, spotting a weakness in Wong Ting’s returns and capitalizing on them. He raced to a lead and looked set to take the Game but was pushed all the way as Wong Ting refused to give up. The final Game was a similar affair, but Li Ping emerged triumphant in both the games to bring the Challengers’ to within sniffing distance of victory.

Han Ying continued her dominance in the Tie and the competition, securing victory over Fu Yu and confirming the inevitable result for Shazé Challengers. Her signature calm manner of patiently dictating games and seeing off her opponents bore fruit yet again, as she won the final Match 11-7, 11-5, 8-11 with no hiccups.

Oilmax-Stag Yoddhas take on the Dabang Smashers TTC on the 24th of July at 7.30 PM at the Thyagaraj stadium in New Delhi.