Punjab Newsline, Sports ;
Strong showing by Indian players at the WTT Feeder Series 2026 in Vadodara, with several major upsets in the qualifying rounds
Indian players delivered an impressive performance at the WTT Feeder Series 2026, being held at the SAMA Indoor Sports Complex in Vadodara, as several paddlers booked their spots in the main draw across categories. In the women’s singles, 13-year-old Tanishka Kalbhairav made full use of her wild card entry, winning all her matches to qualify for the main draw, while Parth Magar, Jash Modi and Shankhadip Das caused notable upsets in the men’s singles qualifying rounds.
In the women’s qualifying stage, Tanishka Kalbhairav dominated Group 5 with a flawless record. After winning her first two matches on Wednesday, she faced Nepal’s Evana Thapa in her final group match on Thursday. The Belgavi-born youngster continued her fine form, defeating Evana 11-9, 11-6, 12-10 to finish on top of the group and advance to the women’s singles main draw. Joining her in the main draw were Selena Selvakumar, Anusha Kutumbale, Sampada Bhiwandkar, Ananya Muralidharan and Pritha Vartikar.
In the men’s singles qualifying knock-out matches, Parth Magar edged past Mehan Senthil in a closely fought contest, winning 12-10, 15-13, 13-15, 11-8. Jash Modi produced a dominant display to thrash Sriram Sivam 11-5, 11-6, 11-6, while Shankhadip Das overcame Kumar Harshit 11-8, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8 to seal his place in the main draw.
In the women’s doubles qualifying round, the pair of Kavya Bhaskar and Pranati Paramesh defeated Senhora Dsouza and Naisha Rewaskar 11-13, 11-7, 11-5, 11-9 to qualify. The remaining three pairs advanced directly to the main draw after receiving byes in the qualifying stage.
The mixed doubles qualifying witnessed intense battles, with top seeds Raegan Albuquerque and Suhana Saini grinding out a hard-fought 5-11, 11-9, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10 win over Sriram Sivan and Ananya Muralidharan. Second seeds Abhinandh Pradhivadhi and Nithya Mani registered a commanding victory, beating Dhairya Parmar and Anusha Kutumbale 11-0, 11-0, 11-0.
Earlier, Sarthak Arya and Hardee Patel stunned third seeds Snehit Suravajjula and Sayali Wani to move into the second round of mixed doubles qualifying. In the women’s singles group stage, Anusha Kutumbale held her nerve to defeat the experienced Nithya Mani in a close encounter, keeping her hopes alive for a knock-out berth. Overall, Indian players have made a strong statement at the WTT Feeder Series 2026, setting the stage for more exciting contests ahead.