NEW DELHI: Indian table tennis stalwart Achanta Sharath Kamal delivered a spectacular performance to defeat the country's top-ranked men's singles player Harmeet Desai as Chennai Lions defeated Goa Challengers 11-4 in UTT Season 4 on Saturday.
Sharath won in three games, 11-9, 11-9, and 11-8.
Sharath won the first game 11-9, with the multiple Commonwealth Games winner neutralising Harmeet's aggression with cool precision.
Sharath, 41, carried the momentum forward, winning the second game by a similar margin to capture his franchise's eighth victory point. He then went on to win the third game 11-8.
Yangzi Liu, a Chinese-born Australian player, defeated T Reeth Rishya 2-1 in the tie's last match to complete a surprising victory for the reigning champions.
Earlier, Benedikt Duda of the Chennai Lions won a thriller against Alvaro Robles to win the first match of the tie 2-1.
The world No. 33 won the opening game 11-5, but the Goa Challengers paddler rallied to win the second game 11-8. The third game was a close one, with Duda winning 11-7.
Suthasini Sawettabut of Goa Challenger defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee 2-1 in the second match of the tie.
In the third match of the tie, Sharath Kamal and Yangzi Liu defeated Harmeet and Suthasini 3-0.
Scores: Chennai Lions beat Goa Challengers 11-4.
(With inputs from PTI)
