Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT), India’s premier table tennis league, is gearing up for its latest edition in Chennai from August 22 to September 7 later this year at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium.
The 2024 UTT season will feature an eight-team league for the first time, thus providing a platform for young Indian paddlers to exhibit their talent alongside the world’s elite. This expansion aims to elevate the standard of competition and foster the growth of emerging talent within the sport.
The league has already unveiled the new franchises: Ahmedabad SG Pipers and Jaipur Patriots.
The UTT format has undergone a slight alteration given the new additions. The league will now be divided into two groups of four teams each. Each team will play five times during the league stage, facing all other teams within their respective group once, alongside two randomly selected teams from the opposing group, determined through a draw.
Each team will maintain a roster of six players, including two foreign players.
Niraj Bajaj, Co-promoter of Ultimate Table Tennis, commented:
“The introduction of additional teams will infuse a heightened level of competition, strategically coinciding with the post-Paris Games period to capitalise on the prevailing Olympic fervour nationwide. Moreover, the decision to host the league in Chennai pays tribute to the city’s esteemed sporting heritage, which has produced numerous legendary paddlers, but also reinforces our commitment to honouring its illustrious legacy.“
Vita Dani, Chairperson of Ultimate Table Tennis, added:
“The core mission behind UTT’s inception was to enhance the stature of table tennis in India, providing our players with a platform to compete against the world’s best and propel Indian table tennis to unprecedented heights. Recent historic victories by our Indian players against Chinese opponents and the National men’s and women’s teams qualifying for the Olympics through the world team rankings underscore this mission.“
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