File image of Manika Batra©Twitter
Indian table tennis star Manika Batra has won three places on Tuesday and is a career-high 35 in the ITTF world ranking. The 27-year-old had a special performance by winning India’s first-ever medal at the Asian Cup in November. She had stunned world number five Hina Hayata of Japan and world number seven Chen Xingtong of China on her way to a historic bronze in Bangkok.
That effort earned her 175 points in the standings, contributing to her rise. She had also reached the semifinals of two WTT Contender events in Hungary and Slovenia.
“The Asian Cup performance was definitely one of my best next to the run at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. I enjoyed my game and was very confident,” Manika told PTI.
The Asian Cup medal came after she returned home empty-handed from the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Four years earlier at Gold Coast, she had pocketed four medals, including two golds in an unprecedented run.
She will compete in the Asian qualifying event in Doha for the World Championships later this week. She will also be in Doha for the WTT Contender later this month before appearing at the WTT Star Contender in Goa next month.
In the men’s G Sathiyan remained in 39th place, while veteran Sharath Kamal dropped three places to 47th.
(follow The Singapore Time on Social Platforms.)
Featured video of the day
India make history, win inaugural U19 Women’s T20 World Cup by beating England
Topics mentioned in this article
.
