World Table Tennis Championship Finals | Manika Batra on verge of creating history, enters quarters in mixed and women's doubles
Star India paddler Manika Batra is just one win away from creating history and winning bronze medals in the women's and mixed doubles at the World Table Tennis Championships Finals 2021 in Houston, USA, on Friday. She managed to win her pre-quarters, with partners Archana Kamath and G Sathiyan.
First, in the mixed doubles, Batra and Sathiyan beat China’s Wang Manyu and USA’s Kanak Jha 3-2 (15-17, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7). The Indian duo went on to save two match-points and clinched the thriller. Now the pair will be up against Japan’s Hina Hayata and Tomokazu Harimoto, who are ranked 20th in the world.
In the women's doubles, Batra and Kamath got the better of Hungary’s Dora Madarasz and Georgina Pota 3-1 (11-4, 11-9, 6-11, 11-7) and will face Sarah de Nuette and Xia Lian Ni of Luxembourg. Just a win here in any of the matches, will ensure a medal for India at the championship.Â
Till date, India have managed to win only two medals at the World Table Tennis Championship, that too coming in the inaugural edition in 1926. Meanwhile, the other Indian mixed doubles pair of Sharath Kamal and Kamath fell in the round of 16, as they lost to the French pair Emmanuel Lebesson and Yuan Jia Nan 0-3 (4-11, 8-11, 5-11).