(by Steve Hopkins, photo MLTT)
The Fourth Major League Table Tennis (MLTT) event was played in Bensenville, Illinois this weekend. Four teams battled over three days: Chicago Wind, Portland Paddlers, Princeton Revolution, and the expansion New York Slice.
Friday: Slice vs. Revolution
The New York Slice entered the Golden Game with a 9-6 advantage that came from Koki Niwa winning 2 of 3 over Benedek Olah, Choi Haeeun saving one of three against Jiangshan Guo, Kaden Xu and Jishan Liang logging one of three against Koyo Kanamitsu and Jinxing Wang, Jishan Liang taking 2 of 3 against Mathieu De Saintilan, and Yiran Wu winning all three against Jinxin Wang. This same pattern largely repeated itself in the Golden Game with the Slice winning 21-14, giving them the overall match win with a 15-6 score.
Friday: Wind vs. Paddlers
Chicago Wind opened their weekend with a nail-biter against the Portland Paddlers. The two squads split singles with the Wind taking the first two Gardos and Mo Zhang each won 2 of 3) and the Paddlers winning the last two (Kumar took 2 of 3 and Nordberg won 3-0). Nikhil Kumar and Sid Naresh won Doubles 3-0 as well, so the Paddlers were up 10-5 going into the 6-point Golden Game. The Golden Game was tight 21-19 in Portland’s favor, so the Paddlers logged what looked like a dominant 16-5 win, even though they could have easily lost the Golden Game (and the match) with just 2 points turning out differently.
Saturday: Slice vs. Paddlers
The Slice continued their great run with a 15-6 win over the Paddlers. The Slice won three of the four singles matches (and lost one singles match and doubles). They took a 9-6 lead into the Golden Game, and dominated 21-15.
Saturday: Wind vs. Revolution
Saturday night saw Chicago bounce back against the Princeton Revolution. The two squads split the first two singles (Gardos won 3-0 for the Wind, then Jianshan Guo won 3-0 for the Revolution). The Revolution won 2 of 3 in Doubles. Zhang then won 3-0 for the Wind to put them up two, and then Olah took 2 of 3 making the score 8-7 (advantage Wind) going in to the Golden Game. The Wind dominated in the final exchange (21-15) giving them a 14-7 win.
Sunday: Revolution v. Paddlers
The matchup between the Paddlers and the Revolution was all-Portland on Sunday. Portland swept the singles, and salvaged 1 of 3 in Doubles. This gave them an 11-4 advantage – with the victory already decided before the Golden Game. The final exchange was just as dominant for the Paddlers, winning 21-9. The final score was a 17-4 statement win for Portland.
Sunday: Slice vs. Wind
The weekend finale featured the 2-0 New York Slice against the hosts. The Slice won four of the five initial matches, with Emmanuel Lebesson the only Chicago Wind player to log a win. However, in MLTT, the Golden Game keeps each team alive so long as they can stay within 6 points – and that was the case here as the Wind managed to preserve a 6-9 deficit to give them a chance. The Wind began strong with Mo Zhang, extended their lead with Sean Zhang, saw a dominant performance by Emmanuel Lebesson, and then sealed the victory with Gardos and Cazacu. The Wind win 21-13, and manage a tight, come-from-behind win 12-9.
MLTT fans will next turn their attention towards Pleasantville, New York where the Week 5 event will take place November 7-9. Tickets are on sale to see the Princeton Revolution, Los Angeles Spinners, Texas Smash, and New York Slice.
Visit Butterflyonline.com for the latest table tennis news and results.
