She scored a massive lead of 4-0 victory against world number 18 and local favourite, Prithika Pavade.
Manika Batra scripted history as she became the first Indian table tennis player to reach the singles pre-quarterfinals at the Olympic Games. She scored a massive lead of 4-0 victory against world number 18 and local favourite, Prithika Pavade. Batra in talks with PTI said, “I am exhilarated by defeating a French player in Paris and beating a higher ranked competitor. My aim was not reaching the pre-quarters; I took it one match at a time, aiming to give my best.” She has surpassed her previous performance at the Tokyo Olympics with this match by winning 11-9, 11-6, 11-9, 11-7. Batra had advanced to the round of 32 at the last Olympics.
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Batra’s strategy for the match
The tennis player’s game plan was to target Prithika’s backhand which proved highly successful, even though it was not her original game plan. ”At first, I thought of playing her forehand as discussed with my coach but observed that I was gaining more points on her backhand, so I stuck with my plan,” Batra explained. ”I also mixed in some shots to her forehand to confuse her.”
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All about Prithika Pavade, Batra’s opponent
On the other hand, Prithika Pavade’s parents belong to Puducherry and she was born in a Paris suburb in 2004. The 19-year-old France’s player competed in the Tokyo Olympics and was exited in the first round but since then she has an upward performance record and is ranked 18 in the world as compared to Batra’s 28 position.
Pavade struggled against Batra’s strong performance despite entering the Olympics with a perfect record. The first game was a close run between the two but Batra managed to edge out her opponent and by sealing a 1-0 lead. In the second round, Batra continued to dominate by quickly scoring a 3-1 lead. Pavade’s backhand allowed Batra to take the game 11-6. In the third match, Batra continued her consistent attack and scored a 3-0 lead and further extended it to 5-1. On the other hand, Pavade failed to make a comeback because of Batra’s highly planned strategy and she lost the game by 11-9. In the final round, with the help of his forehand shots, Batra took a 10-5 lead and earned five match points. She won the match on her third match point when Pavade acquired a backhand.
Batra accepted the fact that it was a tough match but stressed the importance of breathing exercises which helped her in staying calm during the match.
