After Jakarta bronze, Manika to focus on mixed doubles
Manika Batra and Sharath Kamal entered the mixed doubles competition at the Asian Games in Jakarta after a handful of practice sessions. The thought of winning a medal never crossed their mind. But they exhibited such on-court chemistry and flair that the pair finished on the podium.
Two bronze medals, one in mixed doubles and another from the men’s team, in one of the toughest fields made it a historic achievement for Indian table tennis.
The bronze in mixed doubles could not have been better timed as the event has been added to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
Manika said the surprise bronze in Jakarta has put the mixed doubles in the limelight.
“Winning a medal in Asian Games is a big achievement. Nobody thought we could win medals in Jakarta but we have proved them wrong. We think we can win a medal in the Tokyo Olympics too,” she said.
“Before the Asian Games I hardly practised for five sessions with Sharath in China. We didn’t expect to beat the Korean pairs, who are top class.
“It has given us confidence that we can beat top pairs in the world,” said Manika, who signed a sponsorship deal with Herbalife Nutrition on Thursday.
Asked whether her focus would be more on singles or doubles, she replied: “When we are playing in a big event like Olympics, it is about winning a medal and that should be our focus, not in which events we play. Singles is my main event and I will concentrate on both.”
To promote mixed doubles in its Olympic debut, the world body, ITTF ,has decided to introduce it in five World Tour events (China, Japan, Korea, Australia and Austria) and the World Tour Grand Finals in 2018. It will also feature in 12 ITTF World Tour events in 2019 and beyond.
‘WILL PLAY MORE EVENTS WITH SHARATH’
Manika and Sharath will try and appear in as many events as possible to accumulate world ranking points to make the cut for Tokyo.
Sharath , too, will be looking to end his career on a high. At 36, he is playing with renewed vigour. Unprecedented success at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, where he won two medals (mixed team and men’s team) has boosted his confidence.
“I have looked up to Sharath for what he has achieved and I was looking to this opportunity to play with him,” said Manika.
Table Tennis Federation of India secretary, MP Singh, conceded mixed doubles would be high on their priority list.
“We have a good chance in mixed doubles. We will be looking to enter Sharath and Manika in as many tournaments as possible so that they can get valuable experience and ranking points to qualify for Tokyo.”