National Table Tennis Championships 2025: PSPB men and women reach finals, set to face RSPB
National Table Tennis Championships 2025: PSPB men and women reach finals, set to face RSPB
The Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) men had a nervy moment in their pursuit of the men’s team championship crown for the 23rd consecutive edition, as Delhi pushed them to the brink before the powerhouse team set up a final showdown against the Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) in the 86th Senior National Table Tennis Championship on Tuesday.
Yashansh Malik gave Delhi a dream start by stunning the highly-rated G. Sathiyan in the opening rubber. Promising youngster Payas Jain came agonisingly close to replicating that success in what was a below-par performance from Sathiyan. However, Sathiyan saved three match points in the deciding game to narrowly edge past Payas and secure PSPB’s victory.
In the other semifinal, RSPB ended the remarkable run of giant-killer Assam with a 3-1 win. Powered by Priyanuj Bhattacharyya’s brilliance, Assam had earlier eliminated eighth-seeded Uttar Pradesh and TTFI-1 in the quarterfinal. However, Anirban Ghosh produced a stunning comeback after trailing 2-0 in a thrilling contest filled with long rallies, sealing victory for Railways.
The women’s team championship final will also feature RSPB and PSPB. While the PSPB women eased past Gujarat in the semifinal, RSPB’s Kaushani Nath and Poymantee Baisya narrowly overcame tough challenges from Maharashtra’s Taneesha Kotecha and Ananya Chande, respectively.
