Table Tennis
WTT Star Contender Chennai 2026 draw pits Indian stars on collision course
Manav Thakkar, Manush Shah and Sathiyan G placed in same quarter as women face seeded opponents early.
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran is the 10th seed in Men's singles. (Photo credit: WTT)
The main draw for the WTT Star Contender Chennai 2026 has handed Indian contenders a challenging route, with several top players placed in the same quarter of the men’s singles competition.
Last edition semi-finalist Manav Thakkar, seasoned campaigner Sathiyan G and WTT Feeder Vadodara 2026 champion Manush Shah have all received first-round byes. However, the trio find themselves in the same section of the draw, raising the possibility of an all-Indian clash in the Round of 16 if results go their way.
Manav and Manush could meet in the pre-quarterfinals should both clear their second-round assignments. Tenth seed Sathiyan is also in the same quarter and may face compatriot Harmeet Desai in the Round of 16, provided Harmeet overcomes eighth seed Eduard Ionescu in his second-round encounter.
Sathiyan’s own path is equally demanding. He is projected to face Korea Republic’s Lim Jonghoon, a former world top-10 singles player and current world No. 1 in mixed doubles, in the second round. If the Indian quartet progress as scheduled, the country will be assured of at least one semifinalist in men’s singles.
Tough tests await Indian women
The women’s singles draw presents an even sterner challenge. National champion Diya Chitale opens against Anusha Kutumbale, with sixth seed Hitomi Sato likely waiting in round two. Ayhika Mukherjee and Yashaswini Ghorpade also face potential second-round meetings with fourth seed Cheng I-Ching and second seed Miyu Nagasaki respectively, should they advance past qualifiers.
In mixed doubles, top-seeded pair Manush Shah and Diya Chitale will begin against Korean qualifiers Oh Seunghwan and Kim Seongjin.
Several Indians secured main-draw spots through the qualifiers, including Ankur Bhattacharjee, Jash Modi, Sanil Shetty and Mudit Dani in men’s singles, and Tanishka Kalbhairav, Suhana Saini, Neha Kumari and Nithya Mani in the women’s draw, ensuring strong home representation at the Chennai event.