Table Tennis: Manush Shah, Diya Chitale Crowned Mixed Doubles Champions at WTT Tunisia 2025
Indian Mixed Doubles Duo Secure Gold in Tunisia
The WTT Contender Tunis 2025 was held at the Salle Omnisport de Rades in Tunisia between 22-27 April and was the ninth stop in the 2025 WTT Series, which carries world ranking points that help participants progress to higher tiers, such as the WTT Champions and Grand Smash events.
India’s hopes in the mixed doubles category were pinned on Manush Shah and Diya Chitale and who were the number three seed at the tournament, and among the favourites to win it according to most of the best online betting sites.
With the amount of talent on display, the Indian duo’s journey to the final was far from straightforward, but their easiest match came in the round of 16, where they were drawn against qualifiers Sun Yang and Hu Yi, and they made light work of the Chinese pair, winning in straight sets 11-6, 11-5, 11,5.
In the quarter-finals, Shah and Chitale faced a tougher test in compatriots Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Sreeja Akula, who got in as wildcards. Gnanasekaran and Akula stunned the number-three seeds by winning sets two and three, but Shah and Chitale rallied and won the final two sets to progress 3-2.
Shah and Chitale then eased past Wassim Essid and Hana Goda of Tunisia and Egypt, respectively, in straight sets in the semis, earning a spot in the grand final, where they would go up against the number two seeds Sora Matsushima and Miwa Harimoto.
The final was a back-and-forth contest, with the Indian pair winning the first set before the Japanese duo struck back in set two. The same pattern followed in sets three and four, but Shah and Chitale found their best in the final set, winning it 11-6.
The victory was a historic one for India, as it was only their second mixed doubles title at a WTT Contender event, since Manika Batra and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran claimed gold at the WTT Contender Budapest back in 2021.
Shah/ Chitale Eyeing Global Success Following WTT Contender Title
Following their success in Tunisia, Shah and Chitale have already set their sights on their next target - the World Championships - which will be hosted in Doha between May 17 and 25. Speaking to the media about their victory over Matsushima and Harimoto, Shah said:
“When we played in Doha, we were facing them for the first time. I felt there was a massive difference in the level. But this time, we had some strategies and knew what to expect from such a strong pair. We will push to reach the quarterfinals at the World Championships.”
Shah and Chitale are now ranked 11th in the ITTF Rankings, and their latest triumph was also a bit of redemption, as it was the Japanese pair who beat them in straight sets in the quarter-final of the WTT Star Contender Doha earlier in the year.
Earlier in the competition, Shah and Manav Thakkar reached the Men’s Doubles semi-final before bowing out to Benedikt Duda and Andre Bertelsmeier, while Chitale got to the last 16 in the singles category but was defeated by Germany’s Sabine Winter.
