Recently, Manika Batra and G Sathiyan, who play in mixed doubles, rose to the top of the table tennis world rankings. Manika has gained attention once more after winning bronze in the IITF-ATTU Asian Cup competition. She created history by becoming the first female Indian paddler to take home a medal in table tennis' Asian Cup.
In the bronze medal match, she defeated Hina Hayata, the sixth-ranked player in the world and three-time Asian champion, 4-2 to win the medal. She advanced to the bronze medal match earlier in the day after losing to Mma Ito in the semi-finals, when she stole the show and made history.
“I am really happy with my performance here in the Asian Cup 2022, defeating the world's best & higher ranked players. Winning a bronze medal was a great achievement for me and I went into this tournament with a very positive approach and confidence to give my outstanding performance and things went as per my strategy. And also I have learned many things from here and from my past tournaments,” stated Manika after winning the bronze.
I've learned that minor changes may have a tremendous impact on one's life, therefore I'm happy with some of the choices I made before to participating in this event because they helped me regain my confidence. Every athlete experiences ups and downs throughout his or her career, and I have learned from my mistakes and am on the path to improvement, said Manika. She also thanked her family, coaches, and well-wishers for supporting her, particularly after a challenging Commonwealth Games 2022 that didn't go as planned.
Congratulation messages flowed in after she received the medal. The paddler received tweets of support from the president and prime minister. "I congratulate Manika Batra for scripting history for Indian Table Tennis at the Asian Cup by winning a Bronze. Her success will inspire many athletes across India and make Table Tennis even more popular," wrote The Prime Minister.
The President wrote, “Congratulations to Manika Batra for scripting sports history by becoming the first Indian woman table tennis player to win a medal in the Asian Cup. She defeated top-ranking players in the tournament. This win will inspire our youth, especially girls, to emulate her excellence.”
