India concluded its campaign at the Asian Table Tennis Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, with an impressive haul of three medals, including a historic bronze in the women's doubles event. This achievement marked a significant milestone in Indian table tennis history.
Historic Bronze in Women's Doubles
The women's doubles duo of Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee made history by securing India's first-ever bronze medal in this category at the Asian Championships. Their remarkable journey came to an end in the semifinals, where they were defeated by Japan's Miwa Harimoto and Miyuu Kihara with scores of 4-11, 9-11, and 8-11 in under 30 minutes. Before their semifinal exit, the Indian pair had triumphed over South Korea’s Kim Nayeong and Lee Eunhye in the quarterfinals, sealing their spot in the record books.
Bronze for the Indian Women's Team
The Indian women's team also made headlines by clinching a historic bronze in the team event. The trio of Manika Batra, Ayhika Mukherjee, and Sutirtha Mukherjee secured India’s first-ever women's team medal since the inception of the competition in 1972. Although they ultimately lost 1-3 to Japan in the semifinals, their achievement broke new ground for Indian women's table tennis.
Men’s Team Earns Bronze for Third Consecutive Time
In the men's category, the Indian team of Achanta Sharath Kamal, Manav Thakkar, and Harmeet Desai earned a bronze medal, their third consecutive podium finish at the Asian Championships. The team bowed out in the semifinals after a 0-3 loss to Chinese Taipei.
Individual Performances in Men's Singles
In the men's singles competition, Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah both exited in the pre-quarterfinals. Thakkar, ranked world No. 60, caused a major upset earlier in the tournament by defeating world No. 14 Jang Woojin of South Korea but later fell to Hong Kong’s Baldwin Chan in a one-sided match (4-11, 4-11, 8-11). Manush Shah, on the other hand, delivered a valiant effort against Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yun-Ju, winning two games before narrowly losing in five sets (8-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-6, 12-14).
India's overall performance at the championships demonstrated significant progress, especially for the women's team, as they achieved unprecedented success on the continental stage
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