Defending champion India, led by star sailor Manika Batra, crashed out of the women’s table tennis team at the Commonwealth Games after losing 3-2 to Malaysia in the quarter-finals here on Saturday. After taking an easy win in a group stage match earlier in the day, the Indian women’s team lost to Malaysia in the final eighth leg. Batra won a singles match and lost the other when the Indian team left the tournament early.
India was on the back foot after the pair of Reeth Tennison and Sreeja Akula lost the opening doubles match 1-3 (7-11 6-11 11-5 6-11) before Batra tied the score 3-2 (11-8 11- 5 8-11 9-11 11-3) victory over Ying Ho in singles.
Akula then made up for the doubles loss when she defeated Li Sian Alice Chang 3-0 (11-6 11-6 11-9). But Batra failed to seal the draw for India when she lost to Karen Lyne 3-0 (6-11 3-11 9-11) in the crucial fourth game, while Malaysia made another comeback in the tie.
Malaysia capitalized on the momentum as Ying Ho defeated Tennison 3-2 (10-12 11-8 6-11 11-9 11-9) in a tight decisive match to break the Indian hearts.
Earlier in the day, the Indian women’s team had outclassed Guyana 3-0 in a Group 2 match.
The women’s team, which defended the title it won in Gold Coast four years ago, had had a winning start to its campaign on Friday after beating South Africa and Fiji by identical 3-0 margins.
On the second day of competition, the pair of Akula and Tennison appeared first and it steamed Natalie Cummings and Chealsea Edghill 11-5 11-7 11-7 to give India a 1-0 lead.
Then, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion Batra, who became the first Indian rower to win gold in women’s singles in the last edition, Thuraia decimated Thomas in straight games 11-1 11-3 11-3.
In another woman’s singles, Tennison fought hard to secure an 11-7 14-12 13-11 win against Chealsea Edghill, who put on a spirited show. Her win saw India win the draw convincingly.
The Indian men’s team continued its impressive show by recording its second win in a row with a 3-0 win over Northern Ireland.
Veteran Achanta Sharath Kamal joined Harmeet Desai and defeated James Skelton and Owen Cathcart 11-3 9-11 11-6 11-1 in the men’s doubles to give India a 1-0 lead.
Sanil Shetty then defeated Paul McCrerry 11-5 15-13 11-6 to extend India’s lead.
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But Harmeet Desai had to dig deep before beating Catchcart 5-11 11-9 12-14 11-3 11-6 in a hard-fought second singles match.
(This story was not edited by DailyExpertNews staff and was generated automatically from a syndicated feed.)
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