Manika Batra suffers shock loss, fails to qualify for main draw at third National Ranking TT Championships

FILE PHOTO: Manika Batra failed to go past the qualification stage at the third National Ranking Table Tennis Championships in Phagwara on Saturday. | Photo Credit: R RAVINDRAN

Former national champion Manika Batra suffered a shock exit from the women’s singles qualifiers after losing to Karnataka’s Himanshi Chowdhary in the decisive group match at the third National Ranking Table Tennis Championships here on Saturday.

Himanshi rallied to beat her fancied rival 3-2 (9-11, 11-6, 9-11, 11-8, 11-3) in Group 69 to secure her place in the next stage. It was the biggest upset of the opening day’s competition.

Her efforts also earned her the Tata Power Player of the Day award, a cash prize of Rs. 10,000.

For Manika, who began her campaign with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Monolipi Singha, the defeat was disappointing as she was expected to advance with little difficulty.

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Himanshi’s composure in the closing stages was particularly impressive. After splitting the first four games, she raised her level in the fifth to win the match. It was a significant statement from a qualifier who will now carry the confidence of having beaten one of the country’s most accomplished players.

While Manika’s exit provided the day’s biggest talking point, the other former national champion, Sreeja Akula, navigated her group assignments successfully to secure her place in the next stage. The RBI woman, who also had to go through the qualifying route, showed her class with a 3-0 victory over Bhumika Sahukar in Group 1.

The earlier rounds of the qualifiers produced a series of closely contested encounters, with players digging deep to keep their campaigns alive.

Ahana Sengupta had a mixed outing in Group 15, losing 2-3 to Vanshika Mudgal of FCI before recovering to win 3-2 over Ranjini Saha. Group 19 saw another absorbing contest, with Hiya Singh falling 2-3 to Naisha Rewaskar before bouncing back to defeat Sanchari Chakrabarty 3-1.

Shaniqa Shahid also showed considerable fighting spirit in Group 20. After a 1-3 defeat to Nithyashree Mani, she bounced back to beat Sanya Sehgal 3-2. Preetika P in Group 17 and Mitali Purkar in Group 52 were among the other players who engaged in five-game battles, underscoring the competitiveness of the qualifying rounds.

In the men’s singles qualifiers, G Sathiyan, another established international player who had to negotiate the group stage, made light work of his opening assignments and won his first match comfortably.

Once the qualifying rounds conclude on Saturday, attention will shift to the main-draw action on Sunday, when the top 16 women’s and men’s seeds will enter the competition.