Four days back, Kolkata Thunder Blades had edged U Mumba 8-7 to book its semifinal spot in the seventh edition of the Ultimate Table Tennis.
But when it came to the last-four clash, defending champion Mumba sent Kolkata hurling out of the tournament with a 8-3 win to enter a second consecutive final at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium on Saturday.
The second semifinal began with the match between Eduard Ionescu and Lilian Bardet. The clash between the head band-wearing paddlers was closely-contested and error-ridden, despite there being 30 rungs between them in World Rankings (Bardet at 77, Ionescu at 47). Aptly, Ionescu had a 8-5 lead in the second game, inching towards a two-game lead. But Bardet brought the game back on level terms.
Eventually, Ionescu depended on his backhand winners, deep on the table, and targeted the half and long regions to clinch the Golden Point and the win.
In the third game, Frenchman Bardet was off to a flyer, leading 5-0. But some more backhand winners and a fizzing down-the-line forehand drive helped his Romanian opponent equalise. However, Bardet held on to open Mumba’s account.
“I’m very happy, especially since my start to this season was tough. The strategy was clear but I wanted revenge [smiles],” Ionescu, who had lost to Bardet in the first round of the US Smash last month, said after the match.
Next up was Ayhika Mukherjee against Anna Hursey. Kolkata had not fielded Ayhika during that league-stage match, hoping the “riddler” — as she was called in commentary — would trick her opponent. But Hursey came out with a 2-1 win.
The Welsh paddler targeted Ayhika’s forehand as the Indian was slowing the rallies down with her backhand anti-spin rubber. Hursey kept answering to Ayhika’s defence with offence, especially in the second game. The Indian sending it long on multiple occasions didn’t help.
“You have to figure out where the first ball goes. Have an offensive mindset,” Tobias Bergman, Kolkata’s foreign coach, was heard telling Ayhika ahead of the third. And she did pay heed, taking advantage of Hursey’s apparent need to finish rallies in a hurry. Winning the third game meant the tie was poised at 3-3 before the all-important mixed doubles match.
The right-left combination of Hursey and Manush Shah worked for Mumba. It helped them keep the game in the middle of the table on their side. The Mumba duo’s fifth win on the trot of the season was confirmed when it came back from trailing 4-5 in the second game. A 3-0 blanking followed and Kolkata’s hopes were pinned on young Ankur Bhattacharjee.
The Kolkata teen, who looked off-colour in the mixed doubles match, seemed to find his mojo back momentarily. But Manush would pull his left arm back, mimicking a trigger, and send some thunderous forehand winners past Ankur. With the 2-0 win that got the tie in the bag, Manush was promptly propped up on the shoulders of U Mumba personnel as celebrations broke out ahead of its final against Goa Challengers on Sunday.
Published on Jul 25, 2026
