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Table Tennis: India's mixed doubles pair of G Sathiyan, Manika Batra achieve another big feat

Ace India table tennis pair of Manika Batra and Gnanasekaran Sathiyan has risen to the fifth spot in the latest mixed doubles world rankings.

Sathiyan and Manika

New Delhi, Nov 8: Ace India table tennis pair Manika Batra and Gnanasekaran Sathiyan have risen to the fifth spot in the latest mixed doubles world rankings. The duo clinched a silver medal as they finished as runners-up at the WTT Contender event in Nova Gorica, Slovenia. Sathiyan and Manika lost the final to South Korea's Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin 3-0.

This performance in Slovenia has helped them become the first Indian mixed doubles pair to break into the top five in world rankings.

Manika - who is India's top-ranked women's player in singles - made it to the round of 16 in women's singles in Slovenia and lost in the semi-finals of the women's doubles event along with her partner Archana Kamath before bowing out.

Happy with her overall performance in WTT Contender, Manika said she will take a lot of confidence from it.

"Playing the round of 16 in Women's Singles, Semi-Finals of the Women's Doubles and Finals of the Mixed Doubles, I am happy this tournament went well and how I played this tournament with confidence. Of-course winning and losing are a part and parcel of being a sportsman," Manika said in a statement.

sathiyan and manika

Speaking about the learnings from the tournament, the 27-year-old paddler said they'll beat the best in the world on any stage if they keep working hard.

"We played really well, in the Women Doubles Archana and me) and Mixed Doubles (Sathiyan and myself) categories. It is just about working hard day in and day out. We do have to work on something and I'm definitely sure if we keep on playing like this we can beat the top players going forward," she added further.

Thanking the government and the authorities for their constant support and backing, Manika said, "Thanks to GOI, SAI and TTFI for all the support and continuous interaction with us to help us participate and perform to the best of our capabilities."

While reflecting upon her performance in the women's singles format in Slovenia, Manika - who is ranked 44th in women's singles - said, "In singles, it was considerably a good performance. However, I'll work on things which I have learned from this tournament. Again it's a continuous learning curve and I believe learning is a never-ending process. I am trying to learn from opponents and every tournament is important as my aim is to win medals for India at the upcoming Asia Cup and later the World Championships, Asian Games and of course the Paris 2024 Olympics."

Meanwhile, after becoming the first Indian mixed doubles pair to break into the top 5 in world rankings, Sathiyan wrote in social media post that it is a dream come true moment for them and a positive step towards their target of winning the elusive Olympic medal.

"Breaking into the world's top-5 rankings has truly been a dream come true moment. It is indeed a great milestone towards our goal of reaching the pinnacle and winning that elusive Olympic medal," Sathiyan wrote.

Story first published: Tuesday, November 8, 2022, 14:03 [IST]
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