UTT 2026 auction: Szocs becomes costliest pick, joins Dempo Goa Challengers for Ultimate Table Tennis season 7
Big names commanded bigger bids as franchises zeroed in on proven performers and emerging Indian talent at the Ultimate Table Tennis Season 7 player auction on Tuesday, with Bernadette Szocs topping the charts.
Szocs, snapped up by Dempo Goa Challengers for 40 lakh tokens, headlined a list of marquee acquisitions that underlined the premium on experience. Close behind was Diya Chitale, who became the highest-valued Indian for the second successive year, joining PBG Pune Jaguars for 37.4 lakh tokens. Her mixed doubles partner, Manush Shah, wasn’t far behind, picked up by U Mumba TT for 37.2 lakh.
If Pune and U Mumba invested in Indian mainstays, UP Prometheans, the league debutant, went big on balance, pairing Manav Thakkar (36 lakh) with two-time league MVP Yangzi Liu (32 lakh) to assemble arguably the most formidable core on paper.
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The auction also reflected a growing appetite for youth. Fifteen-year-old Divyanshi Bhowmick was picked by Dabang Delhi and became the youngest-ever signing, while Syndrela Das added to Goa’s blend of promise and pedigree.
UTT auctions are based on tokens as notional value, with players signing contracts with the league promoters for an undisclosed amount. The seventh edition will be played in Panaji, Goa, from July 9 to 26.
The squads:
Ahmedabad APL Pipers: Adrien Rassenfosse (2000000), Sanil Shetty (320000), Payas Jain (1680000), Sofia Polcanova (2720000), Manika Batra (2700000), Kavya Bhatt (320000).
Dabang Delhi T.T.C.: Youssef Abdelaziz (1200000), Sathiyan Gnanasekaran (2700000), Raegan Albuquerque (300000), Maria Xiao (2720000), Divyanshi Bhowmick (1040000), Sutirtha Mukherjee (800000).
Dempo Goa Challengers: Alvaro Robles (2280000), Divyansh Srivastava (300000), Abhinandh P. B. (300000), Bernadette Szocs (4000000), Syndrela Das (1700000), Ananya Chande (300000).
Kolkata ThunderBlades: Eduard Ionescu (2420000), Ankur Bhattacharjee (945000), Jeet Chandra (700000), Zeng Jian (2000000), Taneesha Kotecha (300000), Ayhika Mukherjee (2020000).
PBG Pune Jaguars: Omar Assar (2000000), Snehit SFR (1200000), Mudit Dani (300000), Prithika Pavade (2480000), Diya Chitale (3740000), Sayanika Maji (300000).
U Mumba TT: Lilian Bardet (2140000), Akash Pal (945000), Manush Shah (3720000), Anna Hursey (2220000), Nithyashree Mani (300000), Anusha Kutumbale (300000). UP Prometheans: Ricardo Walther (1200000), Sudhanshu Grover (320000), Manav Thakkar (3600000), Yangzi Liu (3200000), Sayali Wani (900000), Swastika Ghosh (700000).
Published on Apr 28, 2026