In a historic achievement, both the Indian men’s and women’s table tennis teams have secured their berths for the Paris Olympics for the first time ever. Despite facing defeats in their pre-quarterfinal matches at the ITTF World Table Tennis Team Championships in Busan, South Korea, on Wednesday, India’s teams clinched the last world ranking spots for the Olympics.
Led by the seasoned 10-time national champion, Sharath Kamal, the men’s team displayed commendable performance despite their 3-0 loss against hosts Korea. Similarly, the women’s team, led by Manika Batra, showed resilience in their match against Chinese Taipei but fell short with a 1-3 scoreline.
The entire Indian table tennis fraternity is abuzz with excitement and pride following this historic qualification. Kamlesh Mehta, the General Secretary of the Table Tennis Federation of India, expressed his delight, stating, “The men’s and the women’s teams played very well and we’re proud of them.”
The qualification for the team event at the Olympics marks India’s return to the prestigious competition since the inclusion of the event in the Beijing 2008 Games. The official confirmation of India’s qualification is eagerly awaited and is expected to be announced on March 5th.
This achievement opens up significant opportunities for Indian table tennis players, as two wins at the Olympics guarantee a medal, and also secure two guaranteed singles entries for the Games.
