Indian paddler Manika Batra won both her singles matches, including a thrilling decider against Adina Diaconu, to help India defeat Romania 3-2 in the women’s team pre-quarterfinals at the South Paris Arena in the Paris Olympics on Monday. This historic win marked India’s first-ever team victory in the Olympics, with Manika’s victories playing a crucial role in the triumph.
Manika, who became the first Indian to reach the last-16 stage, bounced back from her disappointing loss in the singles pre-quarterfinals to shoulder the responsibility with composure.
Sreeja Akula and Archana Kamath gave India a positive start by winning the opening match against Diaconu and Elizabeta Samara 11-9, 12-10, 11-7 in the doubles.
The duo coordinated well and secured the first two games, despite a good challenge from the Romanians. The Indians erased two-point deficits in the second and third games on their way to victory.
World No. 28 Manika made it 2-0 by upsetting 10th-ranked Bernadette Szocs 11-5, 11-7, 11-7 in singles. Manika’s strong forehands helped her pull away from 5-5 to win the first game. She then showed better control, varied her shot pace to win the second game, and capitalised on Szocs’ errors to take the third game.
In the second singles, Sreeja lost to Elizabeta after twice squandering her leads. Struggling against the left-hander, Sreeja made several mistakes. Despite some excellent shots in the decider, Elizabeta regained her lead and won the match. Meanwhile, Archana levelled her match against Bernadette by winning the second game but couldn’t maintain her performance.
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Learning from her past mistakes, Manika stepped up in the decider and delivered for her teammates. She varied her shots and executed spectacular drives and backhand drop shots to pull ahead of Diaconu. Despite a tough challenge from the Romanian with smart shots in the second and third games, Manika remained unstoppable.
“We played with confidence and started really well with doubles. That gave me confidence. I am really happy with how we all supported and cheered each other and played our best games,” Manika told Sportstar.
“I made the same mistake in 2019, when we lost against Romania in the deciding match. I lost my last match, but this time I was focussing only on one point and on the match, and that really helped me. I was more calm and confident this time. With Berni, I recently lost, but this match was unbelievable for me because I played amazing today... I handled that pressure really well (in the last match).”
Coach Massimo Costantini was delighted with Manika’s effort. “Her entire game is to be patient. Every time she rushes, there is a risk of making mistakes. She managed very well. She did some proper variation. Her game is to confuse the opponent. So, the more you vary, the better you will be. The doubles win was crucial,” said Costantini.
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