Mumbai, May 29 (IANS) U Mumba TT made rising paddler Ahona Ray — winner of the girls’ singles title at the WTT Youth Contender Doha 2026 and a medallist across national and continental competitions — the first overall pick in the UTT Juniors Season 2 Draft, as all seven franchises finalised their squads for the upcoming grassroots competition, set to be held from July 8 to 19 alongside UTT Season 7 in Goa.

Returning for its second edition, UTT Juniors will once again integrate India’s brightest U-15 paddlers, selected from the Dream Sports Championships Table Tennis 2026 held earlier this year in Chennai, into the professional UTT ecosystem, with 14 players — seven boys and seven girls — drafted across the league’s seven franchises.

The drafted players bring with them impressive credentials from the WTT Youth circuit and other international competitions. Defending champions Kolkata ThunderBlades added the promising duo of Vatsal Duklan and Titash Chatterjee to their roster, while the reversal of the draft order in the second round saw Dabang Delhi TTC complete the selections through Himon Mondal and Sreejani Chakraborty.

The tournament has quickly established itself as a key platform in India’s table tennis development pathway by allowing young paddlers to train alongside Butterfly UTT professionals during the competition window, work under franchise coaches, and experience elite high-performance environments firsthand.

One of the standout performers from the inaugural season, Divyanshi Bhowmick, recently became the youngest-ever player drafted into a Butterfly UTT squad after being picked by Dabang Delhi TTC at the Season 7 auction, underlining the initiative’s growing impact on the grassroots ecosystem.

Commenting on the initiative, UTT Co-Promoter Vita Dani said: “Dream UTT Juniors has become an incredibly important part of our larger vision for Indian table tennis. The first season highlighted the quality and potential that exists at the grassroots level, and this platform gives young players the opportunity to learn and compete within a truly professional environment. Our aim is to continue creating meaningful pathways that help the next generation grow with confidence and ambition.”

A collaboration between UTT and Dream Sports Foundation (DSF), Dream UTT Juniors is aimed at strengthening grassroots sport and creating long-term development pathways for young athletes across India. By combining competitive opportunities with the experience of being part of a professional league environment, the initiative seeks to accelerate the growth of emerging table tennis talent.

At the draft, Ahmedabad APL Pipers picked Souswarya Banerjee and Aarya Redkar, PBG Pune Jaguars selected Aarav Acharya and Shreya Dhar, while UP Prometheans secured Nilay Pattekar and Subhomita Basak, and Dempo Goa Challengers brought in Akash Rajavelu and Sreosree Chakraborty. U Mumba TT added Somdev Sengupta to complete the process.

The competition will follow the same format as UTT, with each franchise playing the others once during the league stage. Every tie will feature a Boys’ Singles, Girls’ Singles, and Mixed Doubles match, with each game won contributing one point to the standings. The top four teams will qualify for the semi-finals, with all matches streamed live on FanCode.

UTT Juniors Season 2 Squads:

Ahmedabad APL Pipers: Souswarya Banerjee, Aarya Redkar

Dabang Delhi TTC: Himon Mondal, Sreejani Chakraborty

Dempo Goa Challengers: Akash Rajavelu, Sreosree Chakraborty

Kolkata ThunderBlades: Vatsal Duklan, Titash Chatterjee

PBG Pune Jaguars: Aarav Acharya, Shreya Dhar

U Mumba TT: Somdev Sengupta, Ahona Ray

UP Prometheans: Nilay Pattekar, Subhomita Basak

–IANS

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