How UTT’s TTR is Quietly Correcting Long-Held Technical Flaws Among Indian Paddlers

Last week, when Dempo Goa Challengers’ lanky Álvaro Robles unleashed a left-handed forehand, Dabang Delhi TTC’s G. Sathiyan was quick to raise his hand, calling for a Table Tennis Review (TTR), the newly introduced cutting-edge video-assisted technology being used at Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) 2026.

Within seconds, Vipin Mehra – a Blue Badge umpire officiating the match – reviewed the rally from multiple angles and found that Robles’ shot had clipped the edge of the table, a touch that would have been nearly impossible to detect with the naked eye. The review went in Dabang Delhi’s favour.

Needless to say, TTR has brought greater accuracy and transparency to the sport, while also making the job of umpires considerably easier.

Similar to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in football, TTR made its live debut at the ITTF World Tour Grand Finals 2019 and has since been implemented at major events, including the ITTF Mixed Team World Cup 2024 and the ITTF World Cup 2025.

As TTR makes its debut in the seventh season of UTT, a league that has emerged as a launchpad for young talent, it is expected to create a ripple effect by helping players better understand the correct application of the system.

“I think TTR is playing a huge role in educating the grassroots-level players as well as the players going for big competitions. So, it’s helping them improve their service style and understand whether they are doing it right or not,” Jay Modak, the coach of U Mumba TT, told Sports Now.

Explaining further, Modak said the technology would help players better understand the game’s finer nuances and adapt their technique to avoid errors.

“Basically, there are three things in a TTR. First, the height of the toss. Whether the hand is going down or it stays up and it goes up correctly,” he said.

An identical situation cropped up when UP Prometheans’ Manav Thakkar called for a review of Dabang Delhi player Youssef Abdelaziz’s serve, alleging it was too high. The chair umpire relented to Thakkar’s challenge, and the decision eventually went in his favour, with TTR adjudging that the serve was too high.

“The second thing is the angle of the serve. When you toss the ball, at how many degrees the angle comes out. And the third thing is the hiding of the ball. So, whether you’re hiding the ball with your neck, your body, or anything of that sort. So, all these three things are now being watched on television continuously, and the players watching in India, I think, are understanding whether their opponents are serving legally or not, and whether they themselves are serving legally or not,” Modak explained.

Focus shifted to polishing technique

TTR has also prompted players and coaches to fine-tune their techniques, refining their serves and overall playing styles to comply with the review system.

The impact has been instantaneous. In just over a week of play in the seventh season of UTT, players have become technically wiser and are showing greater care in the way they play their shots and serve the ball. “I see a 100 percent difference,” said Modak.

He is particularly impressed by Snehit Suravajjula, Diya Chitale and Sayali Wani, the 20-year-old UP Prometheans paddler who stunned star Indian player Manika Batra of Ahmedabad APL Pipers to secure a narrow 8-7 for her team.

“On the first day, Sayali was tossing the ball at, I think, a 42-degree angle, whereas she’s supposed to do it at 30. In the last game, you saw there were four challenges against her, all under control. So, she has understood where the toss should go. Same with Snehit. He had four faults against him in the last game with his reverse pendulum. Today, you see, none of them because he’s coming onto the ball. They’re already learning from the mistakes they were making. I think Diya had a wrong call at all,” he stated.

Asked about TTR’s long-term impact on Indian players, Modak said the focus had already shifted towards mastering the correct techniques for serving and shot-making.

“It’s about educating the players. And now, the players are more aware of this. Technically also, the coaches are making the players aware whether they’re serving correctly or not. So, that helps everybody,” he said.

Scope for improvement

TTR currently uses 14 cameras placed around the table to review six types of challenges – serve height, serve angle, service position relative to the ball surface, ball position relative to the playing surface, ball hiding and edge-ball contact – compared to 10 cameras used at World Table Tennis (WTT) events.

Modak, however, said that for TTR to become a completely foolproof technology capable of bringing greater transparency to an intense sport like table tennis, there is still room for improvement.

“TTI can add one thing to their serve review, which is the one we had a controversy about – the service bounce. Generally, they don’t look at it. So, I think there should be a camera maybe on top of the table which looks at the bounce, and then you maybe understand whether it was right or wrong. Like today, it was fair sportsmanship from the Jaguars when they gave away the point. But if that camera is introduced, then maybe you don’t have that controversy. as well,” he remarked.