On Saturday, the Indian men’s table tennis trio of Manav Thakkar, Manus Shah, and Harmeet Desai defeated Tajikistan in their 19th Asian Games encounter. The Indian team defeated Tajikistan 3-0 at the GSP Gymnasium Table 1.
Manav Thakkar opened the scoring for India with a 17-minute victory against Afzal Mahmudov, giving his team a 1-0 lead over Tajikistan. The first game was a tight one, but Manav Thakkar won. The Indians breezed through the second game, winning 11-5. He had a little more aggressive strategy against Mahmudov, which helped him easily win the second game.
Manav Thakkar was behind 4-6 at one point, with Mahmudov forcing mistakes. However, a strong late-game comeback enabled Manav Thakkar to win 11-8, 11-5, 11-8. Manush Shah beat Ubaydullo Sultonov 13-11, 11-7, 11-5 in the second match.
Sultanov controlled the first game at one point, taking a 9-7 lead. Manush, on the other hand, mounted a superb comeback to cut the deficit to 9-9 with two straight points. Manush came from behind to win the opening game 13-11. In the third game, the Indian paddler outscored Sultanov 9-5. Manush won the third game 11-5 and the match 11-5, earning India a 2-0 lead over Tajikistan.
Harmeet, the tie’s star paddler, defeated Ibrokhim Ismoilzoda 11-1, 11-3, 11-5 without breaking a sweat. Harmeet jumped off to a 6-0 lead over Ibrokhim, and it wasn’t long before he increased his lead to 10-1. In no time, he had won the first game 11-1. He led 10-3 in the second game before bringing up the game point at 11-3. Harmeet won the third game 11-5, completing a three-game sweep of his Tajik opponent.
The victory gave India a 3-0 straight-match victory against Tajikistan in their opening Pool F encounter. Earlier in the day, the Indian women’s table tennis team of Diya Parag Chitale, Ayhika Mukherjee, and Sutirtha Mukherjee defeated Nepal 3-0.
Featured Image: Outlook India