All posts tagged: sreeja akula

Sreeja Akula lone Indian standing in Yokohama

Sreeja Akula lone Indian standing in Yokohama

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Sreeja Akula was left the lone Indian standing at the 2026 WTT Champions Yokohama in Japan as Manika Batra, Manav Thakkar, and Manush Shah all suffered first round exits. Akula registered her career’s first win in a Champions event, beating Sofia Polcanova of Australia 3-2 in the first round. The Indian paddler lost her opening game 9-11 but fought back to win the next three 11-8, 11-6, 12-10 to register a come-from-behind victory in just over 32 minutes. Later, wildcard entrant Batra lost out 1-11, 7-11, 7-11 with barely any fight against the second seeded Kuai Man of China. In men’s singles, Shah and Thakkar also faced similar fate. While Thakkar went down 2-3 after a hard fought battle against Slovakia’s Darko Jorgic, Shah was blanked 3-0 by France’s sixth seeded Alexis Lebrun, leaving Akula the lone Indian standing in the prestigious tournament. Akula will next face the seventh seeded Shin Yubin of South Korea in the women’s singles round of 16 on Friday. Disclaimer: We do not own any of the content, ideas, images, …

“Exclusion from the Asian Games 2026 squad is disheartening”: Manika Batra

“Exclusion from the Asian Games 2026 squad is disheartening”: Manika Batra

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India’s leading table tennis player Manika Batra has questioned the process behind her exclusion from the main squad for the 2026 Asian Games, calling for greater transparency and consistency in the application of selection criteria. The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) on Thursday named Manika among the reserve players for the continental showpiece despite her being India’s second-highest ranked women’s singles player in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings. In a detailed statement issued after the squad announcement, Manika expressed disappointment over both the decision and the manner in which it was reached. “My exclusion from the Asian Games 2026 squad is deeply disheartening, not only because of the outcome, but because of the manner in which the selection criteria appear to have been interpreted and applied. No specific reason has been communicated to me,” she said. The former Commonwealth Games champion also appealed to the Sports Ministry and the Indian Olympic Association to review the matter. “I respectfully request the Hon’ble Sports Minister and the leadership of the Indian Olympic Association …

Manika Batra left out of India’s Asian Games Table Tennis main squad, Ayhika Mukherjee misses out

Manika Batra left out of India’s Asian Games Table Tennis main squad, Ayhika Mukherjee misses out

Published by Webster

India’s most decorated women’s table tennis player, Manika Batra, has been left out of the main squad for the 2026 Asian Games after failing to satisfy the selection criteria laid down by the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI). The 30-year-old, who won a historic mixed doubles bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games and has multiple Commonwealth Games medals to her name, was named among the reserve players for the continental event scheduled in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4. According to TTFI, selections were made based on a policy introduced in 2023, which allocates 50 per cent weightage to national rankings, 40 per cent to world rankings and the remaining 10 per cent to the discretion of the selection committee. Despite being India’s second-highest ranked women’s player at World No. 51, behind Sreeja Akula at No. 45, Manika’s absence from domestic tournaments meant she did not feature prominently in the national rankings, affecting her overall selection score. Sreeja Akula to lead Women’s Squad Sreeja Akula headlines the women’s squad, which also …

Manav Thakkar, Manika Batra off to disappointing start

Manav Thakkar, Manika Batra off to disappointing start

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Indian table tennis players including manav Thakkar and Manika Batra started their ITTF World Cup 2026 on a disappointing note, losing their respective opening group matches in Macao on Monday. In men’s singles, Manav Thakkar lost to Park Gang-hyeon of the Republic of Korea in straight sets 0-3 (7-11, 6-11, 8-11). The world no 33 will now take on world No. 2 and Olympic silver medallist Truls Möregårdh of Sweden in the final group game. Asian Games medallist Manav is the sole Indian representative in the men’s game. 🚨#news l Manika and Manav lose their opening group stage match at the ITTF World Cup 2026🏆 🇮🇳 Manika Batra lost 3-0 (18-16, 11-4, 11-6) to Japan’s Miwa Harimoto 🇯🇵 While 🇮🇳 Manav Thakkar, went down 3-0 (11-7, 11-6, 11-8) to Korea’s Park Gang-hyeon 🇰🇷 Only the top 16 group… pic.twitter.com/0WItamFWkI — The Bridge (@the_bridge_in) March 30, 2026 Meanwhile, Manika Batra lost to a higher-ranked Miwa Harimoto of Japan 3-0 (16-18, 4-11, 6-11). The world no 47 Indian will be up against Olympian Lily Zhang, ranked 42nd, …

Manika Batra, Manav Thakkar lead India’s challenge – Preview

Manika Batra, Manav Thakkar lead India’s challenge – Preview

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India’s top paddlers, led by Manika Batra and Manav Thakkar, are set to take on the world’s best as the ITTF World Cup 2026 begins on March 30 in Macao, China. With 96 players competing across men’s and women’s singles events, the tournament promises high-quality action, and India will be represented by three players: Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula in the women’s draw, and Manav Thakkar in the men’s competition. Tough Group Stage draws for Indian players The tournament begins with a round-robin group stage, where 48 players in each draw are split into 16 groups of three. Only the group winners progress to the knockout stage. Manika Batra finds herself in a challenging Group 4 alongside World No. 5, Miwa Harimoto (Japan), and World No. 42 Lily Zhang (USA). Ranked 47th, Batra will need a strong showing to break through. Sreeja Akula, placed in Group 2, faces an even tougher test with World No. 2 Wang Manyu (China) and Fu Yu (Portugal). Meanwhile, in the men’s draw, Manav Thakkar is grouped with World No. …

Indian campaign ends as Manav, Sreeja exit in first round

Indian campaign ends as Manav, Sreeja exit in first round

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India’s run at the 2026 WTT Champions Chongqing came to an early end as both Manav Thakkar and Sreeja Akula faced a first-round exit in the tournament. Thakkar, who received a late visa to travel to China for the event, went down 6-11, 7-11, 6-11 in straight games to World No 12 Dang Qiu of Germany. India’s highest ranked men’s singles paddler was of no match to Qiu, losing in just under 19 minutes. Thakkar’s exit brought an early end to the Indian contention in the tournament. Earlier on Tuesday, women’s singles paddler Sreeja Akula suffered the same feat in first round. Having only recently returned from a long injury lay-off, Akula was shown the door by wildcard entrant Anna Hursey. The Indian went down 12-14, 11-5, 9-11, 8-11 after a hard fought 32-minute encounter against the Welsh paddler. Disclaimer: We do not own any of the content, ideas, images, or text presented here. All rights belong to their respective owners. For more information and to view the original source, please visit the following link: …

Manika Batra, Manav Thakkar lead India’s challenge – Preview

Check out India men and women’s complete draws for 2026 ITTF World Team C’ships

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The Indian men’s table tennis team was drawn in Group 7 alongside Slovakia, Tunisia, and Guatemala for the 2026 ITTF World Team Championships on Monday. Meanwhile, the Indian women were drawn in Group 6 along with Ukraine, Uganda, and Rwanda. The Indian teams will start their campaign in Stage 1b and will have to finish on top of their four-team group to advance to the knock out stages, starting from Round of 32. The six best second-placed teams will also move to the knockouts, while the remaining eight second-placed teams will play a knock-out among themselves to advance to the main draw. Slated to begin with Stage 1a with the top teams who directly have a spot in the knockout stages, the 2026 ITTF World Team Championships will mark 100 years since the competition’s first edition in 1926. Men’s Groups Group 1: China, Sweden, Korea Republic, England Group 2: France, Japan, Germany, Chinese Taipei Group 3: Denmark, Madagascar, Mexico, Mongolia Group 4: Brazil, Hungary, Puerto Rico, Uzbekistan Group 5: Slovenia, Czechia, Spain, Bahrain Group 6: …

ITTF Mixed Team World Cup 2025: Manav, Manika to lead India in now Olympic event – Preview

ITTF Mixed Team World Cup 2025: Manav, Manika to lead India in now Olympic event – Preview

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Ace paddlers Manika Batra, and Manav Thakkar will lead the Indian contingent at the 2025 ITTF Mixed Team World Cup, which is all set to commence in Chengdu, China on Sunday. This is the first edition of the Mixed Team World Cup since the mixed team event was added to the Olympic roster for the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games earlier this year. Joining Batra and Thakkar for the event will be veteran Olympian Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Akash Pal, the young Payas Jain, Yashashwini Ghorpade, Swastika Ghosh, and Diya Chitale. Format The 2025 ITTF Mixed Team World Cup will be played in three stages with 16 teams from across the globe in contention. In the first stage, the 16 teams will be divided into a four groups of four teams each. Each team will play a group stage round-robin, with the top two teams from the group advancing to the next stage. In the second stage, the qualified teams from Stage 1 will all compete in a single group. All teams will play each other with …

Sreeja Akula exits in the round of 128

Sreeja Akula exits in the round of 128

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India’s Sreeja Akula had a disappointing first round loss at the 2025 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships in Doha, Qatar on Sunday. The highest ranked Indian women’s singles paddler lost out 11-9, 8-11, 6-11, 5-11, 2-11 after being a game up against Suthasini Sawettabut of Thailand in 33 minutes. Sreeja started the match in a composed manner and played a few good cross-table shots and efficiently used her defensive blocks to stop the aggressive game style of Suthasini to win the first game 11-9. The second game was also very closely poised, with both players keeping themsleves within the reach but in the end Sreeja lost three points in a row and lost 8-11. This reversal completely diminished Sreeja’s momentum, who could not make a comeback and lost the next three games without putting much pressure on Suthasini and dropping the match 1-4. Three doubles pairs in the second round In the doubles categories, India had a comparatively better day as they won all three first-round matches of the day, two in women’s doubles and …

ITTF World C’ships: Diya Chitale, Manush Shah win, Sreeja Akula exits in R128

ITTF World C’ships: Diya Chitale, Manush Shah win, Sreeja Akula exits in R128

Published by Webster

Indian paddlers were in action at the first round of the 2025 Table Tennis World Championships in Doha, Qatar on Saturday. Sreeja Akula, Diya Chitale, and Manush Shah played the singles round of 128 matches, whereas the men’s doubles duo of Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah were in action in the round of 64. In women’s doubles, both Indian pairs of Diya / Yashaswini Ghodpade and Ayhika Mukherjee / Sutirtha Mukherjee began their campaign in the first round. As it happened: Disclaimer: We do not own any of the content, ideas, images, or text presented here. All rights belong to their respective owners. For more information and to view the original source, please visit the following link: Source link