Manika Batra Advances to WTT Champions Quarterfinals with Victory Over World No. 14
New Delhi, October 26: Indian table tennis star Manika Batra reached the quarterfinals of the WTT Champions tournament in Montpellier, France, after defeating World No. 14 Bernadette Szocs on Friday night.
Ranked 30th globally, Batra won the tightly contested match against the Romanian, who was the 8th seed, in a 29-minute showdown, clinching a 3-1 victory with scores of 11-9, 6-11, 13-11, and 11-9.
Batra showcased her resilience, saving two game points in the third game. In the fourth game, despite trailing 4-7, Szocs took a timeout. However, Batra withstood her opponent’s late comeback attempts, converting her second match point to secure the win, improving her head-to-head record against Szocs to 6-5.
Notably, Batra had previously defeated Szocs in a 3-2 victory during the pre-quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics, where she made history as the first Indian to reach the round of 16 in women's singles.
Batra's next challenge will be against World No. 21 Qian Tianyi of China on Saturday. Tianyi advanced to the quarterfinals after a commanding 3-0 (11-7, 11-9, 13-11) win over top-seeded compatriot Wang Yidi.
Batra began her campaign with a dominant 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 12-10) victory over Lily Zhang of the USA.
Meanwhile, another Indian contender, Sreeja Akula, faced a tough first-round exit, losing 3-2 (6-11, 11-7, 11-1, 8-11, 11-8) to World No. 13 Adriana Díaz from Puerto Rico.