Chitkara University boys and girls began their gold-medal hunts in earnest on the first day of the 4th Khelo India University Games (KIUG) at the Nehru Stadium complex, in Guwahati on Monday.

The university boys from Punjab thrashed Jadavpur University from West Bengal 3-0 in their Group A tie, courtesy of Yashansh Malik, Wesley Do Rosario and Chitwan Wadhwa. Except for Wesley, who won 3-1 against Soumil Mukherjee, the other two completed 3-0 triumphs.

Their women similarly defeated the University of Calcutta in the morning session.

In the second match of the same group, VNS Gujarat University boys beat Gitam University from Andhra Pradesh 3-1. However, in the Group B matches, Chandigarh University downed MKB University, also from Gujarat, 3-0, while Adamas’ boys overcame hiccups to beat Vels University from Chennai 3-0.

After Karthikeyan and Roopan Santhosh provided the 2-1 lead, SRM was precariously placed at 2-2 when Deepit Patil took it too close. But Shrikrishna Arunachalam pulled it off with a 3-0 win in the fifth rubber against Jignesh Rahatwal, giving the university from Chennai a 3-2 win in the first round in Group C. In a grueling matchup, the University of North Bengal beat Punjabi University, Patiala, 3-2.

The University of Madras beat RTM Nagpur University 3-2 in a close Group D first-round win, and Ronak Mazumdar led the University of Calcutta’s 3-2 triumph over Delhi.

In Girls’ Group A, Jain University from Karnataka defeated MKB University from Bhavnagar, Gujarat, 3-1, following an indifferent start provided by Anargaya Manjunath. However, Yashaswini Ghorpade saw that the Bengaluru outfit finished winners even as Karruna Gajendran provided the cushion with a win over her rival Naitri Dave in the third rubber. Chitkara taught a lesson in table tennis with a 3-0 win over the University of Calcutta. Bolstered by Suhana Saini, who struggled in the first game against Akansha Das, Chitkara beat the Kolkata squad.

In Group B, the University of Madras made it a routine outing to beat the University of Rajasthan despite Ancy John Maria getting stretched by Sarika Gurjan in the first tie. But Nithya Shree Mani and Aashika Neelakandan made it a one-sided affair to keep a clean slate. Then, Chandigarh University beat LN Mithila University (Bihar) 3-0.

Another Chennai outfit, SRM University, rolled over the University of Mumbai 3-0 in Group C, as Kavyashree, Gladlyn Flora, and Kaashvi Gupta provided the impetus before the tough matches ahead. Taking the cue, the University of Delhi rode on a competent bunch of players in Kavya Yadav, Vanshika Bhargava, and Tisha Kohli to tame Jadavpur University from West Bengal 3-0.

Osmania University beat Panjab University from Chandigarh 3-0 in the first round of Group D, despite Varuni Jaiswal being taken the distance in the first tie. However, Bhaavitha Nagulapalli and Devisree Dongari did it style with straight games win over their rivals. But SNDT University from Maharashtra scrapped past Adamas University, West Bengal, 3-2 after some hiccups. Samruddhi Anant Kulkarni turned on the heat with two singles wins to control the damage after Swapali Narale and Dhanashri Pawar lost their first and third rubbers.

The girls will play their last two rounds tomorrow, while the boys will get to play their second round only.

Results (Round One):

Boys:

Group A: Chitkara University bt Jadavpur University 3-0; VNS Gujarat University bt Gitam University 3-1.

Group B: Chandigarh University bt MKB University 3-0; Adamas University bt Vels University 3-0.

Group C: SRM University bt University of Mumbai 3-2; University of North Bengal bt Punjabi University 3-2.

Group D: University of Madras bt RTM University 3-2; University of Calcutta bt University of Delhi 3-2.

Girls:

Group A: Jain University bt MKB University 3-1; Chitkara University bt University of Calcutta 3-0.

Group B: University of Madras bt University of Rajasthan 3-0; Chandigarh University bt LNM University 3-0.

Group C: SRM University bt University of Mumbai 3-0; University of Delhi bt Jadavpur University 3-0.

Group D: Osmania University bt Panjab University 3-0; SNDT University bt Adamas 3-2.