Zagreb: Indian star paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran had a dream start at the WTT Contender as he ousted world no.6 and European cup champion Jorgic Darko of Slovenia in the opening round.
Sathiyan registered 3-1 (6-11, 12-10, 9-11, 12-10) win over Darko here at Dom Sportova on Thursday night to enter the round of 16.
The Indian faces against Chinese paddler Chen Yuanyu for a place in the quarterfinals.
"Went all guns blazing as I secured a massive win tonight taking down the World Rank 6 & current European cup champion Jorgic Darko (SLO) 3-1 in the Men Singles Round of 32 here in WTT Contender Zagreb 2022," Sathiyan tweeted.
The 29-year-old is part of the Indian table tennis team for the upcoming Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
With the Birmingham CWG set to begin next month, the Zagreb tourney will help Sathiyan to fine-tune his preparations. (UNI)