Both the Indian men's and women's teams suffered defeats in their pre-quarterfinal matches at the ITTF World Table Tennis Team Championships in Busan. However, they have managed to secure their maiden Olympic qualification clinching the last world ranking spot, awaiting official confirmation.
This marks a significant milestone for Indian table tennis history, as it will be the first time the nation competes in the team event at the Olympics since its inception at the Beijing 2008 Games.
Despite the official team rankings awaiting confirmation on 4 March, preliminary calculations affirm the qualification of both Indian table tennis squads for the forthcoming Paris Olympics.
“The men’s and the women’s teams played very well and we’re proud of them. We’re waiting for the official announcement that we have qualified for the Paris Olympics, which will come on the 5th of March,” Kamlesh Mehta, Table Tennis Federation of India general secretary, said.
For the Indian women's team, ranked 17th in the world, their journey came to an end after a hard-fought battle against world No. 4 Chinese Taipei.
Despite a valiant effort from Manika Batra, who secured an early lead with a thrilling victory, the team faltered against their formidable opponents. The spirited performances from Sreeja Akula and Ayhika Mukherjee were not enough to turn the tide, ultimately culminating in a 3-1 defeat.
Chinese Taipei, ranked fourth in the world, defeated the 17th-ranked Indian women's team 3-1 in their round of 16 match.
Similarly, the men's team, ranked 15th globally, faced a formidable challenge against world No. 5 South Korea. Despite the best efforts of top-ranked players like Harmeet Desai and veteran Sharath Kamal, India fell short, succumbing to a clean sweep by their Korean counterparts.
With inputs from IANS
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