UTT 2024: Who are the owners of Ultimate Table Tennis Season 5 franchises?
The fifth edition of the Ultimate Table Tennis is set to take place between August 22 and September 7 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai.
The league came into existence back in 2017 with six teams competing in the inaugural edition. The tournament was formed by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani under the Table Tennis Federation of India’s wing.
The upcoming season will feature eight teams, which includes Jaipur Patriots and Ahmedabad SG Pipers.
So, here’s a look at the owners of the Ultimate Table Tennis 2024 franchises:
Ahmedabad SG Pipers – SG Sports and Entertainment Private Ltd.
The Gujarat-based side is one of the two newcomers that will make its debut in the 2024 edition of the Ultimate Table Tennis. The franchise is owned by the SG Sports and Entertainment Private Limited, which has support from the APL Apollo Group.
At the helm in the CEO’s capacity is Indian tennis great Mahesh Bhupathi.
Chennai Lions – Multiple co-owners
The Chennai Lions, which clinched its maiden UTT title in the third edition in 2019, is co-owned by multiple persons. They include S Rangarajan, Chairman and MD, Data Patterns, Rekha Murthy Rangarajan, Director, Data Patterns, GS Ravi, Chief Mentor, LiteMed, and Vinay Chandra, Principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP US.
The Lions ended the last edition as runners up after it failed to defend its title. Goa Challengers was the winner that season.
Dabang Delhi TTC – DOIT Sports Management
The 2018 champion and 2019 runners-up, Dabang Delhi TTC is owned by the DOIT Sports Management. Radha Kapoor Khanna and Roshini Kapoor are the directors of the company.
Radha also owns Pro Kabaddi League franchise Dabang Delhi KC, under the aegis of the DOIT Sports Management company, which has won the season eight of the PKL.
Goa Challengers – Shrinivas Dempo, Vivek Bhargava
Of the Dempo Group from Goa, Chairman Shrinivas Dempo is one of the co-owners of defending champion Goa Challengers. Vivek Bhargava, Co-founder, ProfitWheel, is another co-owner of the franchise.
Dempo SC, a five-time football top-tier champion, is also owned by the Dempo Group.
Jaipur Patriots – World of Krida Private Ltd.
Joining the Ahmedabad SG Pipers as debutants will be the Jaipur Patriots. The franchise is owned by the World of Krida Private Limited. The Mumbai-based company added the UTT side to its list of sporting franchises.
The sports teams owned by the company include Pune 7 Aces (Premier Badminton League), Rajasthan Patriots (Premier Handball League), Chicago Patriots (United States Premier League), Mumbai Patriots (3BL India – 3×3 Pro Basketball League), Zagreb Patriots (3BL Croatia- 3×3 Pro Basketball League), Udon Thani Patriots (3BL Thailand- 3×3 Pro Basketball League), Tokyo Patriots (3BL Japan- 3×3 Pro Basketball League), Punjab Patriots (Tennis Premier League), Toronto Patriots (3X3.EXE).
Bengaluru Smashers – Punit Balan
A film producer, Punit Balan owns Bengaluru Smashers, one of the many teams he has under PBG (Punit Balan Group).
The other franchises he owns include PBG Kolhapur Tuskers (Maharashtra Premier League), Pune Jaguars (Tennis Premier League), PBG Mumbai Khiladis (Ultimate Kho Kho), and Maharashtra Ironmen (Premier Handball League).
Puneri Paltan – InsureKot Sports Private Ltd.
The Puneri Paltan is owned by the InsureKot Sports Private Limited company. It also owns the Pro Kabaddi League franchise Puneri Paltan that won its maiden title in season 10.
U Mumba – Unilazer Ventures Private Ltd.
Unilazer Ventures Private Limited owns U Mumba side. With Suhail Chandhok in the CEO post, the company also owns Pro Kabaddi League side by the same name, which won the PKL in the second season and ended runners up twice in the league.
The company also owns the Mumba Masters that plies its trade in the Global Chess League.