India's Table Tennis Stars Exit World Championships in Doha

Manika Batra's Early Exit

In Doha, Qatar, on May 20, India's prominent table tennis player Manika Batra faced an early exit from the World Table Tennis Championships Finals 2025. She was defeated by South Korea's Ga-Hyeon Park in the women's round of 64.

Ranked 46th in the world, Manika had previously secured a victory against Nigeria's Fatimo Bello in her opening match. However, she was unable to overcome Park, losing decisively with a score of 4-0 (11-8, 11-7, 11-5, 11-8) in a match that lasted just over 35 minutes.

Diya Chitale's Challenge

Diya Chitale also faced disappointment, as she was eliminated by Cheng I-Ching from Chinese Taipei, a three-time Olympian, in the same round. Chitale struggled initially, losing the first three games but showed resilience by winning the fourth game. Despite her efforts, Cheng secured the match with a 4-1 victory (11-3, 11-7, 11-6, 6-11, 11-5).

Manav Thakkar's Valiant Effort

In the men's singles, Manav Thakkar put up a brave fight but ultimately fell short against Japan's Tomokazu Harimoto. Ranked 49th globally, Thakkar made Harimoto, who is ranked fourth, work hard for his win. He saved two game points in the first game and managed to win the third and fifth games, hinting at a possible upset. However, he lost the match 4-2 (13-11, 11-3, 9-11, 11-6, 9-11, 11-3).

End of Singles Campaign

With the defeats of Manika Batra, Diya Chitale, and Manav Thakkar, India's singles campaign at the World Table Tennis Championships Finals 2025 concluded on a disappointing note. However, Diya Chitale and Yashaswini Ghorpade, ranked 16th, are set to return to the court for the women's doubles round of 16, where they will face the world No. 6 Japanese duo of Miwa Harimoto and Miyuu Kihara on Wednesday.