New Delhi: Star paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran has become the first-ever Indian to win a men's singles trophy at a WTT Feeder Series event in Beirut, Lebanon. He defeated compatriot Manav Thakkar 3-1 (6-11 11-7 11-7 11-4) on the final day of WTT Feeder Beirut 2024 on Thursday night.
Seeded No.11, Gnanasekaran enjoyed a rewarding path to the final in the Lebanese capital, taking down No.5 seed Harmeet Desai (15-13 6-11 11-8 13-11) and top seed Chuang Chih-Yuan (11-8 11-13 11-8 11-9) along the way. But the match Gnanasekaran will remember most is the final as he overcame an early setback to see off No.9 seed Thakkar in four games.
The result marks Gnanasekaran's first men's singles success at a WTT event, and his first singles title at an international ranking event since ITTF Czech International Open 2021. Meanwhile, Xia Lian Ni picked up her second WTT Feeder title in women's singles, producing an excellent display to break down Suh Hyo Won's defensive barrier 11-9 11-5 11-5.
A wildcard entrant for the event, Ni dropped just one game on her way to the semifinal, and was even more clinical at the penultimate hurdle, needing just three games to dispatch No.2 seed Chen Szu-Yu (11-7 11-9 11-4).
Appearing in her first international women's singles final since 2018, Suh did everything in her power to try and lay her hands on a first WTT singles trophy. But there was no denying Ni as the 60-year-old age-defying star collected her second title at this level, one year on from earning her first at WTT Feeder Havirov 2023.
In men's doubles, the Indian pair of Manav Thakkar and Manush Utpalbhai Shah had to be content with the second position, losing 11-5, 7-11 11-13 12-14) against Andy Pereira and Jorge Campos, who are the first pair from Cuba to strike WTT title success. Among other Indians, Diya Chitale and Manush Shah defeated Manav and Archana Kamath 3-1 (11-6 10-12 11-6 11-6) to win the mixed doubles title.
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