Table Tennis
China Smash 2024: Ayhika-Sutitrtha advance to round of 16
The only victory of the day came from the doubles pairing of Ayhika and Sutirtha, as India suffered defeats in all the singles matches
Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee. (File Photo)
Indian women's doubles pairing of Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee advanced to the round of 16 of the China Smash 2024 at Shougang Park, Beijing, on Monday.
Ayhika and Sutirtha defeated Chinese Taipei's Chen Szu-Yu and Hong Kong's Lee Ho Ching in straight games 3-0 (11-9, 11-4, 11-9).
The duo will face Chinese Taipei's Cheng-I-Ching and Li Yu-Jhun, the top seeded pair, in the round of 16.
India, however, had a forgetful day at the WTT event in the other categories, with paddlers making a humiliating exit from the singles events.
Manav Thakkar was the first to fall for India, losing to China's Zeng Beixun in straight games 3-0 (9-11, 9-11, 8-11).
India's highest-ranked paddlers, Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula also faced first-round exits. Manika lost to Japan's Mima Ito, the sixth seed of the tournament, in straight games 3-0 (3-11, 9-11, 9-11).
Sreeja, returning to action for the first time since the Paris Olympics, lost to Japan's Miu Hirano in straight games (10-12, 4-11, 5-11).
India's Sharath Kamal, the veteran paddler and five-time Olympian, raised hope for a win after claiming the opening game of the match against Indian-origin Australian Aditya Sareen.
But the Australian paddler bounced back strongly to win the subsequent three games and won the match 3-1 (11-9, 13-15, 12-14, 9-11).
