Table Tennis has been India’s strong sport as of late and the likes of Manika Batra and Sharath Kamal have shinned on the big stage and have brought laurels for the country. The Table tennis league has also unearthed many youngsters and has helped the Indian Table tennis players get a more competitive setup to play in.
The Table tennis contingent have got off to a rousing start at the Commonwealth Games 2022. The table tennis women’s team has got the pole position and have topped group 2 after a dominating 3-0 win over Guyana in their third group match on July 30.
With three wins from as many matches, the Indian women’s table tennis team, comprising Manika Batra, Reeth Tennison, and Sreeja Akula, have romped into the quarter-finals of the CWG 2022 women’s team event with flare.
Young paddler Sreeja Akula and Reeth Tennison got off to a blazing start against Natalie Cummings and Chelsea Edghill. The Indians were right on the money and edged the Guyanese pair 11-5, 11-7. 11-7. Manika Batra then steamrollered past Thuraia Thomas with the Guyanese player completely clueless on how to stop the Indian’s onslaught.
It was just a one sided show as Manika Batra gained more confidence with each passing point. Such was Manika’s dominance that Thuraia could only manage a total of seven points in three games. Manika’s winning score of 11-1, 11-3, 11-3 helped India take a 2-0 lead in the tie.
While it looked like wrapping up the third game was just a mere formality, Reeth Tennison was troubled by Chelsea Edghill. Although the Indian started well by winning the first game by 11-7, she was stretched to win the next two on extended points.
The duo matched shot-to-shot and unforced errors did not help Reeth Tennison either. The Indian managed to wrap up the second game at 14-12. Reeth Tennison was given a very tough fight by Edghill in the third game but used all her experience to emerge victorious by 13-11 to seal the tie in India’s favor.
