India’s Olympic team debut will be led by Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra in Paris 2024.
In the Paris Games, where India will compete in team events for the first time in the Olympics, world no. 24 Manika Batra and seasoned veteran Sharath Kamal will lead the Indian men’s and women’s squads, respectively.
In the Paris Games, where India will compete in team events for the first time in the Olympics, world no. 24 Manika Batra and seasoned veteran Sharath Kamal will lead the Indian men’s and women’s squads, respectively. Along with announcing the players who will compete in the singles events, the senior selection committee of the Table Tennis Federation of India on Thursday selected a six-member squad (three in each section) in accordance with Olympic regulations. The men’s team will consist of Sharath, Harmeet Desai, and Manav Thakkar, while the women’s team will be composed of Manika, Sreeja Akula, and Archana Kamath.
G. Sathiyan and Ayhika Mukherjee would be the “Alternate Player” in each section.
Sharath and Harmeet will play in the men’s singles, while Manika and Sreeja will compete in the women’s division.
The most recent world rankings served as the basis for the choice.
After making his debut at the 2004 Games, 41-year-old Sharath will be competing in his fifth and last Olympics.
Three players “got selected themselves” because to their world rankings and sustained performances, while the squads and individuals were chosen based to the predetermined TTFI standards.
On the other hand, there was disagreement on the third member of the women’s team. Following Manika and Sreeja Akula, who were selected based on their superior world rankings (top 50), Archana Kamath (103) was the third player to join the team.
The paddler from Bengaluru defeated Ayhika Mukherjee (133) in all categories, including ranking.
Regarding the males, Harmeet (No. 63) and Manav (No. 62) were separated by one place in WR, with Sharath ranking himself as the top-ranked Indian at No. 40.
National champion Harmeet received the nod from the selectors despite both making the team due to his superior win-loss ratio in relation to his participation on the international and national stages.
Massimo Costantini was invited as a special guest to the conference, which added clout as the foreign expert’s advice was valuable in choosing the squads.
As early as next week, Costantini will assume leadership of the Indian squad for the third time. Earlier this week, he touched down in India.
Different players Sathiyan and Ayhika will not be staying in the official Games Village; instead, they will fly to Paris with the squad. Should there be an injury, their services would be required.
Men’s teams: G. Sathiyan, alternate player; A. Sharath Kamal, Harmeet Desai, and Manav Thakkar.
Women: Sreeja Akula, Archana Kamath, and Manika Batra; Ayhika Mukherjee is the alternate player. PTI BS TAP
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