Manush Shah remains a vital cog in U Mumba TT’s wheel, even if his form has fluctuated in Ultimate Table Tennis Season 7. A dependable singles player and one of the league’s finest doubles specialists, much of the defending champion’s fortunes rest on his shoulders.

Against PBG Pune Jaguars at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium here on Thursday, Manush once again proved his worth. Although he lost his opening singles match, he rose to the occasion in the pivotal mixed doubles as U Mumba edged Pune 9-6 to register its second successive victory.

U Mumba had earlier drawn level through Anna Hursey, whose disciplined counter-attacking game proved too good for Diya Chitale in the second match. The Welsh youngster prevailed 2-1 to extend her unbeaten run this season and make it 3-3 in the tie.

The momentum then swung decisively in U Mumba’s favour in the mixed doubles. Manush and Anna combined brilliantly to outclass S.F.R. Snehit and Prithika Pavade 3-0.

Manush’s sharp angles from deep behind the table complemented Anna’s consistency and composure in the crucial exchanges as the defending champion surged to a 6-3 lead, needing just two more games from the remaining two matches.

In the reverse men’s singles, Lilian Bardet produced another fearless display against Omar Assar, the highest-ranked player in the league at World No. 35.

A compulsive attacker who lives by the sword, the Frenchman stuck to his high-risk, high-reward game plan. It paid off as he battled to a 2-1 victory and virtually (8-4) sealing the tie.

Pune reduced the margin when Prithika Pavade defeated Anusha Kutumbale 2-1 in the final singles match.

The results: U Mumbai bt PBG Pune Jaguars 9-6 (Manush Shah lost to S.F.R. Snehit 11-6, 9-11, 6-11; Anna Hursey bt Diya Chitale 11-9, 9-11, 11-6; Manush & Anna bt Snehit & Prithika Pavade 11-9, 11-4, 11-7; Lilian Bardet bt Omar Assar 7-11, 11-7, 11-10; Anusha Kutumbale lost to Prithika Pavade 8-11, 10-11, 11-10).

Like fine wine, G. Sathiyan’s partnership with Dabang Delhi has matured and grown richer over the years.

The only player to represent the franchise in all seven editions of Ultimate Table Tennis, the 33-year-old again proved his worth at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium on Friday.

He won both his matches — first in the mixed doubles alongside Spain’s Maria Xiao and later against Germany’s Ricardo Walther in the fourth singles — as the former champion opened its campaign with a 9-6 victory over debutant UP Prometheans.

In the day’s other keenly fought tie, Kolkata ThunderBlades edged out PBG Pune Jaguars 8-7.

As expected, India’s top-ranked paddler Manav Thakkar gave UP the early advantage with a 2-1 win over Youssef Abdelaziz in the opening men’s singles. Maria restored parity for Delhi by beating Yangzi Liu 2-1 in the women’s singles.

With the scores locked at 3-3 (in points) after the opening two matches, the pivotal mixed doubles assumed added significance.

Delhi seized the initiative as Sathiyan and doubles specialist Maria combined brilliantly to register a commanding 3-0 victory over the Manav-Yangzi pairing.

Maria, a five-time WTT mixed doubles champion with Alvaro Robles, was the perfect foil for Sathiyan as the duo dominated from start to finish.

Returning for the fourth singles, Sathiyan was at his best. Mixing sharp attacking play with his trademark consistency, he defeated Walther 2-1 to all but seal the contest for Delhi.

In the second women’s singles, UP’s Sayali Wani fought off a spirited challenge from 15-year-old Divyanshi Bhowmick to win 2-1 and reduce the final margin to 9-6.

While on Thursday, Table Tennis Review (TTR) wasn’t employed, it was put to use on Friday three times in the UP-Delhi tie.

The results: Dabang Delhi bt UP Prometheans 9-6 (Youssef Abdelaziz lost to Manav Thakkar 11-8, 11-5, 10-11; Maria Xiao bt Yangzi Liu 11-6, 11-7, 4-11; Sathiyan & Maria bt Manav & Yangzi 11-9, 11-7, 11-5; Sathiyan bt Ricardo Walther 11-8, 11-6, 6-11; Divyanshi Bhowmick lost to Sayali Wani 11-9, 5-11, 10-11).

PVR Kolkata Thunder Blades bt PBG Pune Jaguars 8-7 (Ankur Bhattacharjee lost to SFR Snehit 9-11, 4-11, 11-5; Zeng Jian bt Prithika Pavade 11-6, 11-7, 8-11; Eduard Ionescu & Ayhika Mukherjee bt Snehit & Prithika 7-11, 11-10, 11-6; Ionescu lost to Omar Assar 11-5, 6-11, 4-11; Taneesha Kotecha bt Diya Chitale 11-7, 11-2, 9-11).