India end WTT Contender tournament at Lagos with nine medals, including three golds

In the thriller title match, Sreeja prevailed against Ding Yijie of China 4-1 with a score of 10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.

The Indian contingent ended their campaign at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender Lagos with a total of nine medals, including three golds, a silver medal and five bronze medals.

Paris 2024 Olympics-bound, star paddler Sreeja Akula on Sunday scripted history as she won the World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender singles title in Lagos, becoming the first Indian to win the singles crown.

In the thriller title match, Sreeja prevailed against Ding Yijie of China 4-1 with a score of 10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.

In the women’s singles, Ayhika and Suthirtha Mukherjee had to settle for a bronze as they lost in the semifinals. In the final four, Sreeja played a close match against compatriot Sutirtha Mukherjee, securing her place in the final with a 3-2 victory. In the other semi-final, Ayhika Mukherjee suffered a defeat against Ding Yijie 2-3, setting up the pivotal clash between Sreeja and Ding.

Earlier in the day, Akula and her partner Archana Girish Kamath registered a 3-0 victory in the women’s doubles finals defeating Yashaswini Ghorpade and Diya Parag Chitale. Ghorpade and Diya had to settle for a silver as the the Olympic-bound duo overpowered the all-Indian summit clash, winning in straight sets 11-9, 11-6, 12-10.

During the semifinal, Sreeja and Archana defeated their compatriots Ayhika and Suthirtha Mukherjee by 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 12-10). Ayhika and Suthirtha had to settle for a bronze in the women’s doubles.

India got their third gold medal as the national champion Harmeet Desai paired up with Manav Thakkar to beat Nigeria’s Olajide Omotayo and Azeez Solanke by a 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-8) to win the men’s doubles title, becoming the first Indian men’s pair to secure a Contender title.

India also secured two medals in the mixed doubles competition, as pairs of Archana Kamath and Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah and Diya Chitale lost in their respective semifinal matches.

The WTT Contender Lagos was held from June 19 to 23 in Nigeria. (ANI)

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