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Key Points

India's singles challenge at the World Table Tennis Championships ended with Manika Batra, Diya Chitale, and Manav Thakkar suffering defeats. Batra fell to Korea's Ga-Hyeon Park in straight games, while Chitale lost a hard-fought match against Cheng I-Ching. Thakkar pushed Japan's Olympic medallist Tomokazu Harimoto but ultimately lost 4-2. India's doubles pair of Chitale and Ghorpade remains in contention for a medal.

Key Points: Manika Batra and Manav Thakkar Exit World Table Tennis Championships

  • Manika Batra loses 4-0 to Korea's Ga-Hyeon Park
  • Diya Chitale falls to Cheng I-Ching despite late fightback
  • Manav Thakkar pushes Tomokazu Harimoto before 4-2 defeat
  • India's doubles pair remains in contention
2 min read

World Table Tennis Championships Finals: Manika, Manav, Diya's defeats end India's challenge in singles event

India's singles campaign ends as Manika Batra, Diya Chitale, and Manav Thakkar suffer defeats at the World Table Tennis Championships in Doha.

"Manav saved two game points and won key games, but Harimoto's experience prevailed – Tournament Report"

Doha, May 20

India's star paddler Manika Batra crashed out of the World Table Tennis Championships Finals 2025 after enduring a defeat against the Republic of Korea's Ga-Hyeon Park in her women's round of 64 match in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday.

Manika, ranked 46 globally, ousted Nigeria's Fatimo Bello in her opening round fixture. However, she suffered a 4-0 (11-8, 11-7, 11-5, 11-8) defeat against Ga-Hyeon Park in the next match. The 144th-ranked paddler trounced Manika in a fixture that lasted for just over 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, Diya Chitale lost against the three-time Olympian Cheng I-Ching of Chinese Taipei in the round of 64. Chitale crashed out of the tournament after finding herself on the back foot in the opening three games.

After losing the first three games, Chitale bounced back in the fourth game. She threatened to come back after showing signs of a spirited comeback; however, Cheng closed out the win with a victory in the fifth game and moved to the next round with a 4-1 (11-3, 11-7, 11-6, 6-11, 11-5) triumph.

Coming to the men's singles event, Manav Thakkar fought with valiance, but it wasn't enough to confirm his spot in the next round. He walked out of the World Table Tennis Championships Finals after losing to Japan's Tomokazu Harimoto.

World No. 49 Thakkar made Harimoto, who is fourth in the men's singles table tennis rankings, toil hard for the victory. Manav saved two game points in the opener and even won the third and fifth games, hinting at a potential upset.

However, Manav's effort went in vain as he lost by 4-2 (13-11, 11-3, 9-11, 11-6, 9-11, 11-3) against the Japanese paddler, who is a team bronze medallist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Following defeats for Manika Batra, Diya Chitale, and Manav Thakkar, India's singles campaign at the World Table Tennis Championships Finals 2025 came to a bitter end.

Diya Chitale and Yashaswini Ghorpade, ranked 16th, will return to action and compete against the world No.6 Japanese pair of Miwa Harimoto and Miyuu Kihara in the women's doubles round of 16 match on Wednesday.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rahul K.
Tough losses but our players showed great spirit! Manav especially gave Harimoto a real scare - taking two games from world No.4 is no joke. We need more investment in TT infrastructure if we want to compete consistently at this level. 🇮🇳🏓
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Priya M.
Manika's defeat against a lower-ranked player is disappointing 😔 She's our top player and we expect better. Maybe she needs a new coach or training regimen. That said, Diya's comeback attempt was impressive - shows she has the fighting spirit!
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Amit S.
Why is table tennis not getting the same attention as cricket or badminton in India? Look at China - they dominate because they take all sports seriously. Khelo India should focus more on TT academies. Manav's performance proves we have potential!
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Neha T.
The doubles match is still coming up! Let's not lose hope. Yashaswini and Diya have been performing well together. Japanese pair will be tough, but who knows? In TT, anything can happen. All the best to our girls! 💪
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Vikram J.
We need to analyze why our players struggle against East Asian opponents. Their training methods, diet, everything is superior. Maybe send our players for training camps in China or Japan? Just copying cricket model won't work for TT.
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Sanya R.
At least our players are qualifying for these big events now! Remember 10 years back? We barely had representation. Progress is slow but happening. More corporate sponsors should come forward to support these athletes. #SupportIndianSports

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