Indian paddler Manika Batra reached the semifinals after another upset victory at the 33rd ITTF-ATTU Asian Cup in Bangkok on Thursday.
The top-ranked Indian women’s singles player defeated world No 23 Chen Szu-Yu of Chinese Taipei in a match that went the distance.
Batra took a 3-1 lead after dropping the opening game but Chen then fought back to make it 3-3. The Indian then held her nerve to take the decider and defeat Chen for the second time in their sixth meeting. The final score read 6-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11, 11-9 in favour of the Indian.
#AsianCup2022 #TableTennis 🏓@manikabatra_TT's dream tournament in Bangkok continues. After a win against world No 7 Chen Xingtong yesterday, she defeats world No 23 Chen Szu-Yu from TPE in another 7-game thriller. Manika into the semifinals now.
— The Field (@thefield_in) November 18, 2022
https://t.co/euhRRRKAfs pic.twitter.com/lne7KgJ0wy
In the round of 16, Batra had continued her brilliant run at the tournament after she had stunned World No 7 Chen Xingtong for one of the biggest match wins of her career.
Batra will now take Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Mima Ito.
A win will guarantee her a medal and a place in the final, otherwise she will be playing the bronze medal playoff. No Indian woman has won a medal at this event before, with Chetan Baboor the solitary Indian to be on the podium at this event.
#AsianCup2022 #TableTennis
— Vinayakk (@vinayakkm) November 18, 2022
Just a measure of how good Manika Batra's run in this tournament has been...
World rankings of the women's singles semifinalists:
🇨🇳 No 4
🇯🇵 No 5
🇯🇵 No 6
🇮🇳 No 44
Manika will face Mima Ito 🇯🇵 in the semifinals on Saturdayhttps://t.co/Fz64lHNmbZ pic.twitter.com/8FKbqNoS8W
