UTT 2024: Harmeet Desai, Goa Challengers aim to make history with back-to-back titles

Last year in the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT), Goa Challengers, led by Harmeet Desai, saw a late surge in the league, which culminated in a title run. 

The Challengers edged past Bengaluru Smashers by a solitary point at the end of the league stage to finish fourth on the points table to qualify for the knockouts. Following the dramatic entry into the playoffs, the side registered thrilling wins in the semifinal and final to clinch its maiden title. 

The fifth season of the UTT will get underway on Thursday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai. And Harmeet and Co. will have a shot at achieving a feat that no team in the history of the tournament, has done before: win the title for a second time. 

This year, the tournament has expanded to include two new teams — the Ahmedabad SG Pipers and the Jaipur Patriots — bringing the total to eight franchises and increasing the player pool from 36 to 48, including 16 international stars.

READ | UTT 2024: New teams, new format make for challenging fight for title

Defending champion Goa Challengers will face the debutant Jaipur Patriots in the opening match. Harmeet, ranked 85th in the world, acknowledged the pressure of retaining the title. “We have a different scenario this year, as eight teams will participate. But we are very confident… Definitely, there is considerable pressure, but I’m used to it,” he said in a press conference ahead of the new season.

“We will be fighting against seven teams for the title, and the teams have been split into two groups. So, each set is important, and we will take it one match at a time. The first match for us is against a strong Jaipur Patriots, which has a perfect balance of Indian and international players, so currently our focus is on that fixture,” added Harmeet. 

Last edition’s runner-up, the Chennai Lions, led by seven-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist Sharath Kamal, has strengthened its roster with new signings, including CWG gold medallist Mouma Das, Japanese international Sakura Mori, French player Jules Rolland and Abhinandh PB, a teenage sensation from Tamil Nadu and the youngest player this season. 

Sharath noted the positive energy from a change in team ownership and said, “Not just our roster, but our ownership also went through a change, and that, I believe, brings in a new-found positive energy into the team.

“We have a very balanced team in terms of experience. But all things said, it depends on how we start the season, as we have little to no information about the rest of the teams since it’s a new system this time. Our preparations remain the same as every year, and hopefully, we enter the playoffs this season. In the playoffs, it’s a completely different atmosphere,” added the 42-year-old Indian.

The season will conclude with knockout stages on September 5 and 6, and the final on September 7.