Doha: India’s top-ranked women’s table tennis player Manika Batra went down fighting 1-3 against China’s Rui Zhang in the semifinals of the women’s singles at the WTT Contender here Friday.
The 27-year-old paddler ranked 36th in the world, hampered by an injury, was far from her best and although she won the first game, she could not maintain the same momentum against World No. 24 Zhang who came full guns blazing to win the next three games in a match that lasted 18 minutes.
Tomorrow is about to be real busy for Zhang Rui, as she earned her spot in her second finals at #WTTDoha, after beating Manika Batra 3-1 🎊
Who will complete the Men's Singles final at #WTTContender Doha? Find out LIVE! pic.twitter.com/MLDg52W8Am
— World Table Tennis (@WTTGlobal) January 20, 2023
In the other semifinal, Siqi Fan beat fellow Chinese player Liu Weishan with a 3-1 scoreline to set up an all-Chinese final Saturday.
In men’s singles, Korean Jang Woojin took his rightful spot in the final, beating compatriot Lin Shidong 3-0. He will take on Brazil’s Hugo Calderano in the final Saturday.
In the second semifinal, Hugo beat China’s Peng Xiong 3-2 to book a place in Saturday’s final.
IANS