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The WTT Contender Lagos proved to be a memorable one for India. The Indian contingent ended the tournament with nine medals in all, including three golds, one silver, and five bronze medals.
Star paddler Sreeja Akula was the highlight of the campaign. All set for the Paris 2024 Olympics, Akula made history as she won the World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender singles title in Lagos. By doing so, she became the first Indian to have claimed the singles crown as well.
It was an exciting contest where Akula went on to beat Ding Yijie of China 4-1 with a score of 10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6 in the final.
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Speaking of other results for India, the women's singles saw Ayhika Mukherjee and Suthirtha Mukherjee bag a bronze after their defeats in the semi-finals. Akula battled a closely fought contest against compatriot Suthirtha in the final four, emerging victorious with a 3-2 victory.
Ayhika went down to Yijie in the second semifinal, suffering a 2-3 defeat. Therefore, the crucial title clash was set to be played between Akula and Ding.
In the women's doubles finals, Akula, along with her partner Archana Girish Kamath, secured a 3-0 victory as they beat Yashaswini Ghorpade and Diya Parag Chitale. It was an all-Indian title clash, that ensured another two medals at the WTT Contender tournament.
Ghorpade and Diya finished with a silver as the Paris Olympics-bound duo of Akula and Kamath put up a dominating performance in the final, winning in straight sets 11-9, 11-6, 12-10.
The semi-final saw them beat their compatriots Ayhika and Suthirtha Mukherjee 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 12-10). Therefore, Ayhika and Suthirtha ended with a bronze in the women's doubles category.
Harmeet-Manav become India's first men's pair to secure a WTT Contender title
India's third gold medal came courtesy of Harmeet Desai and Manav Thakkar. National champion Harmeet, along with Manav, defeated Olajide Omotayo and Azeez Solanke from Nigeria by a 3-0 margin (11-8, 11-9, 11-8) to bag the men's doubles crown. By achieving this historic feat, Harmeet and Manav also became the first Indian men's pair to win a WTT Contender title.
Further, India bagged two more medals in the mixed doubles event. Pairs of Archana Kamath and Manav Thakkar, and Manush Shah and Diya Chitale went on to face defeat in their respective semi-final clashes, settling for a bronze each.
The WTT Contender Lagos was conducted from June 19 to June 23 in Nigeria.
