Manika Batra trailing 3-1 vs Japan’s Mima Ito in semifinal clash, Indian eyes spot in final of ITTF-ATTU Asian Cup
Table Tennis Asian Cup 2022: Manika Batra vs Japan’s Mima Ito semis clash underway. Star Indian paddler Manika Batra is now just…
Table Tennis Asian Cup 2022: Manika Batra vs Japan’s Mima Ito semis clash underway. Star Indian paddler Manika Batra is now just one win away from sealing a spot in the final of the ITTF-ATTU Asian Cup 2022. She takes on Japan’s Mima Ito in the semifinals on Saturday, 19th November. The tournament is taking place at Huamark Indoor Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. Follow Table Tennis Asian Cup 2022 LIVE updates on InsideSport.IN
Table Tennis Asian Cup 2022 LIVE: HISTORY MAKER Manika Batra vs Japan’s Mima Ito semifinal clash underway, Indian eyes spot in final of ITTF-ATTU Asian Cup – Follow LIVE updates
Manika Batra made history in the ongoing ITTF-ATTU Asian Cup Tournament, toppling World No. 23 and Chen Szu-Yu 4-3 at the Hua Mak Indoor Stadium in Bangkok to enter the semifinals today.
Read full article: https://t.co/dV1xgh9zEO#manikabatra #TABLETENNIS #AsiaCup2022 pic.twitter.com/EdMPvvnSOu
— Table Tennis Federation of India (@ttfitweet) November 18, 2022
Manika Batra, who is ranked 44th in the world on Friday became the first Indian woman to reach the semifinals of the Asian Cup. She defeated eighth seed and World No.23 Chen Szu-yu of Taipei 4-3 (6-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11, 11-9).
With the victory, she also became only the second Indian after Chetan Baboor to reach the semis in the individual event at the Asian Cup. Baboor last won a bronze medal in the event in men’s singles in the year 2000. Now, Manika is looking to become the first-ever Indian woman to qualify for the final of the tournament.
The Indian paddler started the tournament by registering a stunning victory against World No. 7 Chen Xingtong of China. She won the first round contest 4-3 to advance to the quarterfinal.
Meanwhile, Mima Ito is entering the contest after defeating South Korea’s Jeon Jihee 4-0. She began the tournament by defeating Singapore’s Maryam Ali 4-0. She enters the semifinal on a great form as she is yet to drop a game in the tournament so far and looks to continue the same dominance against the in-form Indian.
On the other hand, in the men’s singles, both the Indian challengers – Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, world No. 39, and India’s national champion Sharath Kamal, ranked 44th – were knocked out after losing in the first round.