Young Indian paddler Archana Kamath pulled off a stunning victory over Portugal’s World No. 53 Jieni Shao to move into the women’s singles pre-quarterfinals in the ongoing World Table Tennis Star Contender Goa 2024 at the Peddem Indoor Stadium in Mapusa, Goa on Friday.
The 23-year-old from Bengaluru, who is currently ranked 134 in the world, had a slow start to the round-of-32 match as she lost the first game against the higher ranked and experienced opponent Shao. However, Kamath made a remarkable comeback, winning the next two games before clinching the match by 3-2 (9-11, 11-5, 11-5, 8-11, 11-5) to progress into the next round of the tournament.
Indian star paddlers Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula also entered the pre-quarterfinals.
Batra, who’s ranked 38 in the world, looked in complete control of the match from the start as she won the contest by 3-1 (11-6, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7) comfortably against South Korea’s Suh Hyo Won.
The 25-year-old paddler from Hyderabad Akula also continued her brilliant form and showcased sublime shots on both sides of the table to shock the World No. 30 Hana Goda of Egypt 3-0 (11-8, 11-6, 14-12) in straight games to progress further in the tournament.
“It was a very intense match and my opponent was someone who doesn’t leave the match until it was over. I am very happy that I won the match. She (Shao) used a lot of side spin and up spin during the match and was changing her positions as well which made the match a little tricky but I am glad that I managed that and registered a win,” stated Kamath after winning the contest.
The tournament is co-hosted by Stupa Sports Analytics and Ultimate Table Tennis under the guidance of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI).
Meanwhile, the Indian pair of Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah exit the tournament after facing a 1-3 (7-11, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11) defeat against Kao Cheng-jui and Chuang Chih-yuan of Chinese Taipei in the quarter-finals of the men’s doubles category.
In the Last-8 of the women’s doubles category, South Korea’s Shin Yubin and Eon Jihee beat Sayali Wani and Taneesha Kotecha 3-0 (11-2, 12-10, 11-2) whereas pair of Diya Chitale and Sreeja Akula also faced a 0-3 (9-11, 8-11, 8-11) defeat against Cheng I-ching and Li Yu-jhun of Chinese Taipei.
Manush and Diya fought hard in their quarter-final of the mixed doubles category before going down 2-3 (5-11, 11-6, 14-12, 8-11, 6-11) to the Spanish pair of Alvaro Robles and Maria Xiao.
The men’s singles category saw a comfortable victory of World Number 8 France’s Felix Lebrun, who defeated Park Gyuhyeon of South Korea by 3-0 (11-6, 13-11, 18-16) to move into the pre-quarterfinals. England’s Liam Pitchford overcame the challenge of Wong Chun Ting by 3-2 (11-6, 8-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-8).
France’s Prithika Pavade registered a come-from-behind win by 3-2 (9-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-3) against Ryu Hanna in the round-of-32 of the women’s singles category, while World No. 8 Shin Yubin of South Korea defeated compatriot Choi Hyojoo 3-2 (11-5, 7-11, 12-10, 3-11, 11-4) in a thriller.
The semi-finals and finals will be played on Saturday and Sunday respectively as the fans can enjoy the world-class action by booking their tickets on BookMyShow.
The action will be available live on Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & Sony Sports Ten 2 HD channels on TV and livestream on Sony Liv app.
