Syndrela Das and Sutirtha Mukherjee Reach Women's Doubles Final at WTT Contender Almaty 2026

On September 5, 2026, at WTT Contender Almaty held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, the pairing of Syndrela Das and Sutirtha Mukherjee qualified for the women's doubles final. The Indian third seeds defeated Diya Chitale and Yashaswini Ghorpade – the top seeds and also their teammates within the Indian setup – 3-1 in the semifinals. Das and Mukherjee started strongly by taking the opening game 11-6. The second game was tighter, but they still won it 12-10 to establish a 2-0 lead. In the third game, Chitale and Ghorpade rallied to win 8-11. However, the West Bengal pair did not allow the contest to last longer. They regained control, took the fourth game 11-6, and closed out the victory after 33 minutes. This result is notable because both semifinal pairs were from the Indian setup. The elimination of a top-seeded pair at the semifinal stage shows how small the gap is within the national unit, while also helping Das and Mukherjee prove their composure at key moments. Earlier in the tournament, Das and Mukherjee had beaten Darya Fu and Mariya Lukyanova, local wild cards, 3-1 (11-5, 11-3, 10-12, 11-7) in 24 minutes in the quarterfinals. In the final, Das and Mukherjee will face Miu Hirano and Miyuu Kihara from Japan. The two duos have met once before. Earlier in 2026, at the WTT Contender Zagreb qualifiers, the Japanese pair won 3-0. That result means Hirano and Kihara may hold a psychological edge heading into the decisive match. Still, the current form of Das and Mukherjee looks strong. They have shown good close-to-the-table play, smooth movement, and the ability to stay composed during tense games. If they keep the same level of focus they had against Chitale and Ghorpade, they can certainly challenge the Japanese pair. India's coaching staff has reason to be satisfied with the women's performance at this tournament. Having two pairs reach the semifinals and one pair reaching the final is a positive sign for the growth of Indian women's table tennis on the international stage. To go further, Das and Mukherjee will need to improve on their previous meeting with Hirano and Kihara. The final promises to be exciting and hard-fought. With steady form, good coordination, and a fighting mentality, Das and Mukherjee are close to taking a maiden title at a WTT Contender event.