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The Indian women’s table tennis contingent is off to a great start to the Hangzhou Asian Games with a 3-2 win over Singapore. The team with Manika Batra, Sreeja Akula, Sutirtha Mukherjee, Ayhika Mukherjee, and Diya Chitale combined for singles as well as doubles started off the Preliminary Group event with a solid performance.
India squared off against Singapore in the 12th match of Group F. The first game was a singles match between Ayhika Mukherjee and Zeng Jian. Mukherjee won the first set 11-7 but went on to lose the next three sets 11-2, 11-7 and 12-10. As a result, the game ended 3-1 in favour of Singapore, and they went up 1-0 in the draw.
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The second game was between Jingyi Zhou and Manika Batra. Batra won the first set 11-9 but lost the next set with a mirror score of 9-11. But the Indian star came back strongly and sealed the next two sets on the trot, 11-7 and 11-3. With the win, India equalized the overall score 1-1.
The third game was between Xin Ru Wong and Sreeja Akula, which went down to the last set. Akula dropped the first set 14-12 after a series of excellent returns by Wong. The second win went the Indian’s way, 11-9. The third set was again won by the Singaporean player, 11-8. In response, Akula got the fourth set 11-9 and tied the game with two sets each. The fifth set was a thriller, as both players were not ready to give up. Bit Akula prevailed and gave India a 2-1 lead.
The fourth game was between Jian Zeng and Manika Batra, which was an exciting thriller in all aspects. Jian dominated Batra in the first set and took it 11-3. But Batra came back under pressure and sealed the following set with a mirror score of 3-11. The third and fourth sets were won by each of the players 10-12. After the fourth set, things boiled down to the fifth set, with both girls looking desperate for a win. Both of them were giving a tough fit, being tied at 6-6. But the Singapore player maintained her cool to take the game 12-10.
Men’s Table Tennis beats Yemen 3-0
The Indian men’s contingent, on the other hand, got a 3-0 win against Yemen. G. Sathiyan won the first fixture in straight sets. Sharath Kamal followed suit and won his game in straight sets too. Harmeet Rajul’s result was no different, as he went on to win in straight sets too. As a result, India won against Yemen in just three games, and the two dead rubbers were avoided.
