Indian paddlers win three medals at Asian Table Tennis Championships

This is the first time the nation has won medals in the continental competition.

India finished their 2021 Asian Table Tennis Championships campaign on Monday with a record three medals. All of them were bronze medals. It is a significant achievement for Indian table tennis, as this is the first time-ever that the country has won medals at the prestigious tournament.

Two Indian pairs had booked their place in the men's doubles semi-finals of the Asian Table Tennis Championships. However, both of them suffered defeats at the hands of strong opposition. Sharath Kamal and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran were up against Yukiya Uda and Shunsuke Togami of Japan in the semis.

The match lasted for 32 minutes, with the Indians losing in straight games. In the first game, they were completely outplayed. But, Sharath and Sathiyan did put up a good fight in the following two games. Eventually, they were on the wrong side of a 5-11, 9-11, 11-13 scoreline.

Harmeet-Manav go down fighting

On the other hand, Harmeet Desai and Manav Vikash Thakkar should be proud of their efforts at the Asian Table Tennis Championships. They came mightily close to reaching the final. Harmeet and Manav faced the challenge of South Korea's Jang Woo-jin and Lim Jong-hoon in the semis. At the beginning of the contest, it looked like the Indians would be knocked out quite easily, after comprehensive losing the first two games.

But, Harmeet and Manav completely changed the scenario in the third and fourth games. They showed immense grit and determination to secure wins in those closely-fought games. Taking the match to a decider itself was a great feat against the heavily-fancied Korean duo. Once again the Indians gave it their all, but fell just short. Harmeet and Manav bowed out after a 4-11, 6-11, 12-10, 11-9, 8-11 defeat. The titanic battle lasted for 44 minutes.

Therefore, Sharath Kamal-Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Harmeet Desai-Manav Vikash Thakkar will come home having bagged bronze medals. Not to forget, another bronze medal that the Indian team had won during the opening days of the tournament. Thus, India finished their campaign with three medals. As such, the 2021 Asian Table Tennis Championships at the Lusail Sports Arena in Qatar will be a significant chapter in Indian table tennis.

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