ITTF World Cup 2024: Sreeja, Manika win group-stage openers

Both men’s and women’s singles categories have 16 groups each. Only the group winners will progress to the knockout rounds.

Published : Apr 16, 2024 13:24 IST , CHENNAI - 1 MIN READ

FILE PHOTO: Indian table tennis player Sreeja Akula in action. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Sreeja Akula and Manika Batra began their campaigns at the ITTF World Cup in Macao, China with contrasting wins in their group-stage openers on Tuesday.

World No. 39 Sreeja won 4-0 (11-9, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5) in half an hour against Poland’s Natalia Bajor, a player ranked 13 places below her. World No. 4 Chen Meng of China, the reigning Olympic champion, is the other player in the group.

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Later in the day, World No. 37 Manika came from a game down to beat Romania’s Adina Diaconu 3-1 (9-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-8) in 34 minutes. Manika faces World No. 2 Wang Manyu of China in her other group-stage match.

Both men’s and women’s singles categories have 16 groups each. Matches in group stage consist of four games, with final rankings based on the ratio of games won to games lost. Only the group winners will progress to the knockout rounds.