India went from strong to stronger on day 4 of the event as Indian women’s table tennis team comprising Manika Batra, Madhurika Patkar & Mouma Das won historic Gold at Gold Coast. With the win the the Women’s team event, India became the first team to beat Singapore at a Commonwealth Games Finals.
India, today, broke Singapore’s supremacy for 16 years, a winning precedence set in 2002 Commonwealth Games, and continuing further as Singapore women’s team pocketed every women’s team gold medal on offer.
Underdogs into the match, the Indian team did what is called an image make over and what a way! They put together a performance that will put them in Indian sporting history books for life and has won them hearts of a cheering 2 billions fans back home.
Superstar of the night was 22-year-old, world number 58, Manika Batra, who shocked world number four Feng Tianwei 11-8, 8-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-7 in a gripping match to set the tone of the entire match. Feng Tianwei had never lost a Commonwealth Games singles match before this one.
After 1-0 lead in the event, Yu Mengyu managed to put Singapore back on track defeating Madhurika Patkar 13-11, 11-2, 11-6. The team scoreline 1-1 needed then Patkar with Mouma Das as women’s doubles pair to beat Zhou Yihan and Yu Mengyu 11-7, 11-6, 8-11, 11-7 to take a 2-1 lead for India.
Glory is what the Indian Table Tennis team was chasing and legacy was what they could create today. And Batra took it as her moment of pride, she did just that, blowing Zhou Yihan off the court 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 to clinch India’s first ever women’s Commonwealth Games medal!
In the post event ceremony, a satisfied Manika Batra said, “I was just thinking at 7-all that I had to win, I had to win the medal for India, I wanted to stand on the top step of the podium and have the Indian national anthem played. I’ve practised a great deal with my coach to attack more from my backhand, the pimpled rubber but I think today the big improvement was my forehand, I think that really surprised Singapore. It’s the first time I’d ever played Feng Tianwei but previously when I played Zhou Yihan I lost.”
In other match of Women’s Table Tennis, England beat Australia 3-1 to win the bronze medal.
Indian Men will be playing Singapore in the Semifinal tomorrow while England will play Nigeria followed by Medal matches.