MACAU, Apr 14:
India’s top women paddlers and Paris 2024 Olympians, Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula, made a strong start to their campaigns at the ITTF World Cup 2025 in Macao on Monday, securing convincing victories in their opening group-stage matches and raising hopes of a historic breakthrough at the elite table tennis event.
India has never won a medal at the ITTF World Cup, but the dominant opening performances by the country’s only two representatives at the tournament have kept that long-standing aspiration very much alive.
World No. 30 Manika Batra, leading Group 16, demolished New Caledonia’s Maylis Giret, ranked 186th in the world, in straight games 4-0 (11-1, 11-2, 11-6, 11-4) in a match that lasted just over 18 minutes. Her aggressive forehand play and sharp service returns left Giret scrambling as the Indian star wrapped up the contest with clinical precision.
Manika, who became the first Indian woman to reach the quarterfinals of the World Championships last year, will next face a tougher challenge in Brazil’s Bruna Takahashi, the highest-ranked player in the group at world No. 23. Only the group winners progress to the knockout stage, with win-loss ratios and games won being key criteria in the event’s unique group format.
In Group 9, World No. 34 Sreeja Akula also began on a high, defeating Australia’s Constantina Psihogios (ranked 68th) 3-1 (11-9, 11-4, 11-8, 6-11). Akula, a Commonwealth Games gold medallist in mixed doubles, showed remarkable poise in key moments, especially during a tight first game and a comeback from a deficit in the third.
Sreeja will face her biggest test yet in her final group match against Romania’s Bernadette Szocs, a three-time Olympian and the reigning European Games champion. A win in that match could potentially seal a historic quarterfinal berth for the 25-year-old from Hyderabad.
The ITTF World Cup 2025 is being contested in two phases a group stage followed by a knockout round. Both men’s and women’s singles players have been drawn into 16 groups of three. The group toppers alone will advance, with the knockout phase set to begin on Thursday. Matches in the group stage consist of four games each, and standings are determined by the overall ratio of games won.
India has no representation in the men’s draw this year, placing the spotlight squarely on Batra and Akula, both of whom are also set to represent India at the Paris Olympic Games later this year.
With momentum on their side and the knockout rounds in sight, all eyes will now be on the Indian duo as they look to script history and end India’s medal drought at the ITTF World Cup before the tournament concludes. (UNI)
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