Mumbai’s Diya Chitale put up an impressive performance to clinch two individual gold medals in UTT 81st Junior and Youth National and Inter-State Table Tennis Championships in Jammu on Sunday.
In the final of junior girls singles in the U-18 category, Chitale thrashed Swastika Ghosh, fellow player from Maharashtra, in straight sets 11-6, 11-2, 11-9, 11-5.
In the youth girls (U-21) singles final, the 16-year-old paddler had to put some fight during her 10-12, 11-8, 19-17, 11-6, 11-6 win against Surbhi Patwari of Bengal. After going down in the first game 10-12, Chitale changed the gears and showed great skills to win the match as well as the gold.
Chitale, who had to come through qualifying rounds in both categories, had also played a crucial part in Maharashtra’s gold-winning feat during team event.
Archana Kamath is the only other paddler to win both the title apart from Chitale. In the junior boys singles, Delhi’s Payas Jain emerged champion after beating state-mate Yashansh Malik 11-8, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-7 in the final. Telangana’s Fidel Rafeeque Snehit clinched youth boy’s singles title after registering an easy win over Delhi’s Shreyansh Goel 11-4, 11-6, 11-5,11-7.
Maharashtra paddlers have so far bagged five gold, three silver and five bronze medals in the ongoing competition.