Pune: India's highest-ranked female paddler Manika Batra returned to winning ways on Thursday as she defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee to stamp her authority in the ongoing IndianOil Ultimate Table Tennis Season 4 at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex, Mahalunge-Balewadi in Pune.
Bengaluru Smashers' Manika, who lost to reigning national champion Sreeja Akula in the last tie, looked at her imperious best in the match as she clinched a 2-1 win against the Chennai Lions' paddler.
The franchise-based league, promoted by Niraj Bajaj and Vita Dani under the auspices of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI), has been a game-changer for Indian table tennis since its inception in 2017.
The World No. 35 began the first game with a bang as she startled Sutirtha with her powerful forehands. Later, Manika also used her precise backhands to secure the game by a margin of 11-6.
The second game saw Sutirtha making a strong comeback. She took the lead at the start of the game and put Manika under pressure with her swift net play and accurate shots on both sides of the table. Sutirtha took her compatriot to the edge and won the game through a golden point.
Manika came back strongly in the third game as she used her reach to full advantage. The Asian Games bronze medallist did not let Sutirtha settle into her game and quickly took the game by 11-8 to win the match.
Earlier, veteran Sharath Kamal, who put Indian table tennis on the world map, took his time to settle into the match as Kirill Sutirtha took an early lead in the first game. The Indian paddler then used his experience and precise backhand shots to come back into the game and brought the score down to 10-10. However, Krill was quick to react to earn the golden point and a lead in the tie.
The second game also saw the Kazak paddler going into the lead at first, only for the two-time Asian Games medallist to make a comeback in an astonishing fashion. Top-notch topspins and sidespins were on display as Sharath showcased his class to win the game by 11-7. The third one also went down to the wire where Krill reigned supreme to win the game and match through a golden point.
