Mumbai, 8thJune 2017: The Rajesh Wadhawan Group owned Ultimate Table Tennis team Maharashtra Unitedas coaches Ferenc Karsai and Arup Basak felt that the league will just be right shot in the arm for the sport to popularize in India as well as abroad.
Echoing their views was the team CEO Gaurav Modwel.a?In Ferenc and Arup, we have a perfect blend of international and domestic experience for the team. Thorough professionals the two are, within hours after the coach draft; they got in touch with us and were keen to put forward their plans for the first season. The common goal we all have is to develop the sport; besides making a successful franchise that resonates with all lovers of Table tennis,a? explained Mr. Modwel.
An acclaimed name on the table tennis coaching circuit, Ferenc Karsai has managed the national sides of Austria, Canada and Belgium. While coaching the Austrian national team from 1995 to 2014, Ferenc took themto five Olympic Games. In 2003, under his tutelage, Austrian paddler Werner Schlager won the World Championships.A At the peak of his coaching prowess, Ferenc was the coach of World team playing against China in 2004.
a?Ultimate Table Tennis will be a great boostfor the sport and its talent. India has immense potential and I believe that UTT will give the platform to them to showcase thata? said Ferenc Karsai, coach, Maharashtra United.
Multiple national champion Arup Basak has been at the heart of table tennis scene in India for a long while now. A career decorated with six gold medals at SAF Games, two silvers at Commonwealth Championships; Arup continued to contribute in the sport by coaching national sides since 2011. He started coaching the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB). He went on to become the national coach and selector too. Under his coaching stint, the Indian team won seven gold and 5 silver medals; at the 12th South Asian Games held in Meghalaya in 2016.
Arup commented, a?The introduction of this league is a major positive in Indian table tennis scene. Along with Ferenc, we will make Maharashtra United a force to reckon with. We not only aim to win the league but also win hearts of the fans. UTT will help the fans get closer to the Indian players and get to know them better.a?
Ultimate Table Tennis will start from July 13, 2017 in Chennai then will move to Delhi from July 20 and the ultimate culmination; two semifinals and final will occur in Mumbai from July 28-30, 2017.
The five franchises currently on board for the inaugural season are Dabang Smashers TTC owned by Radha Kapoor Khanna of Dolt Sports; RP-SG Mavericks by Sanjiv Goenka of RP-SG Group, Maharashtra United by Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan of RajeshAWadhawan Group; ASK TTC owned by Sameer Koticha of ASK GroupAand Oilmax Stag Yoddhas by Kapil Garg and Vivek Kohli.
The coach draft scheduled for Monday, includes a vastApool of highly experienced Indian and international coaches. The inaugural season takes place fromAJuly 13 to July 30 in three different cities a Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai.
Ultimate Table Tennis Format
Each team will have eight players a four men and four women a with an equal mix of overseas and Indian players, apart from a foreign and an Indian coach.
The league will have 15 matches, with each tie played on a nine individual match basis. Each individual match will consist of three games on a race to 11 with each game winner being awarded one point.
Each league match will have 27 points to play for and the four franchises; with highest points in the league stage will advance to the semifinals.
The champion will receive Rs 1 crore, runner-up 75 lakh and the losing semifinalists, 50 lakh each. The remaining 25 lakh, from a total purse of 3 crore, is for the individual performers.
World No. 7 paddler Wong Chun Ting ( above ) of Hong Kong and womenas World No.9 Han Ying of Germany; are among the 24 men and women foreign players who will be part of Ultimate Table Tennis.
Indiaas Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra will lead the list of 12 men and 12 women from the country out of a strong pool of 48 players.
About Maharashtra United:
Maharashtra United is an Ultimate Table Tennis team fromAMumbai, Maharashtra. The Rajesh Wadhawan Group owns the club, founded in 2017. It has a committmentAto make a difference not just at the senior level; but also at the grassroots level of table tennis in India.
