Table Tennis
World Table Tennis Team C'Ships: Indian women thrash Uzbekistan 3-0, keep knockout hope alive
Archana Kamath and Manika Batra won their matches in straight games, while Diya Chitale prevailed 3-1 to help India defeat Uzbekistan 3-0 in its third group-stage tie.
Manika Batra and Archana Kamath won their matches in straight games against Uzbekistan at World TT Team Championships in Busan on February 19.
The Indian women's team continued to dazzle at the World Table Tennis Team Championships in Busan, South Korea, as it registered a 3-0 clean sweep against Uzbekistan to keep its knockout hope alive.
India, coming to play Uzbekistan in the backdrop of a 3-2 win over Hungary, did not have to toil very hard to beat Uzbekistan.
With Ayhika Mukherjee and Sreeja Akula being rested, Archana Kamath and Diya Chitale made a telling impact by winning their respective matches.
Playing the first match of the tie, Archana displayed her gritty game by defeating Gufranova Rimma in straight games (7-11, 11-3, 11-6) to give India a 1-0 lead.
Manika Batra, the star of India's win over Hungary, did not find it hard to tackle Markhabo Magdieva as she prevailed 11-7, 11-4, 11-1 as India went 2-0 up in the tie.
With India on the verge of a straight-match win, Diya delivered but not before suffering a scare from Rozalina Khadjieva, who drew level in the second game and forced Diya to play into the net several times.
But Diya held her nerves and continued to fetch winners with a mix of smashes and spinning shots. She eventually prevailed 11-6, 10-12, 11-4, 11-6 to complete India's victory.
This was India's second win in three ties. The national team lost to China 2-3 in its opening tie.
The Indian women's team will play Spain in its final group-stage clash on Tuesday at 1:30 PM IST.
