Singapore Smash 2024: Sreeja Akula loses 3-2 to World No. 3, Sutirtha Mukherjee, and Manika Batra/Sathiyan Gnanasekaran also lose in five-set battles

The Singapore Smash 2024 witnessed some incredible matches take place on the first day of the main draw. The USD 1,500,000 tournament taking place at the Singapore Sports Hub has attracted the finest paddlers from around the world. All of India’s top players are also taking part in the tournament.

The first day of the main draw saw India’s Sutirtha Mukherjee and Sreeja Akula in action in the women’s singles category, while Manika Batra and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran played in the mixed doubles event. Despite not managing to secure a win, all of them put up fierce battles against much higher-ranked opponents.

A closer look at the results of the Indian paddlers at the Singapore Smash 2024

In the women's singles category, Sutirtha Mukherjee went head-to-head against Xiaoxin Yang of Monaco in the first round. Despite going down in the first and third games, Mukherjee fought back both times to level terms.

Similar to the previous sets, the deciding set also saw the two paddlers engage in some fierce rallies, but the paddler from Monaco ultimately triumphed, narrowly winning the final game 12-10. The final score of the match was 4-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-9, 10-12 in favor of Xiaoxin Yang.

Like Mukherjee, India’s other women’s singles paddler, Sreeja Akula, took on a much higher-ranked opponent, Wang Manyu from China, in her first-round encounter. The Chinese paddler is currently ranked third in the world. Akula, who has been playing some phenomenal table tennis, beating World No. 2 Wang Yidi earlier last month, continued to showcase her incredible skill and potential, pushing Manyu to the limit.

Akula put up a great fight but saw Manyu just edge past her in the final set. The match's score was 6-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-8, 8-11.

India’s other paddlers in action on March 10 were the mixed doubles pair of Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Manika Batra. They took on Brazil's Vitor Ishiy and Bruna Takahashi in their first-round match. The closely contested match saw the Brazilian pair beat Batra and Gnanasekaran in five sets. The match's score was 8-11, 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 8-11.

The second day of the main draw will witness India’s Manika Batra and Achanta Sharath Kamal play in the singles events, and the doubles pairs of Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah and Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee will also be in action.