Manika Batra's dream run at the 2024 Saudi Smash in Jeddah continued as she defeated German world number 14 Nina Mittleham in back-to-back matches to reach the women's singles quarter-finals on Wednesday.
The 28-year-old Indian needed just 22 minutes to knock Mittelham out of the competition with an 11-6, 11-9, 11-7 win to reach her first-ever career quarter-finals at a Grand Smash event. In fact, before her campaign in Jeddah, she had never won a singles match at this level.
I am very proud of myself that I played my best match today after beating Wang Manyu, said Batra after her victory according to WTT. That match was very important for me and I was happy and excited, so I had to keep myself calm for this match.
The win also marked Batra's first-ever victory over the German paddler in four meetings.
Ranked 39th in the world, Batra is now expected to break into the world's top 25 when the rankings are updated next.
Everything is going well here, Batra said. Everything in my room, in my practice session, in my match; so i guess i love this country!
She will now face the Japanese Hina Hayata, who is ranked fifth in the world, in the quarter-finals on Thursday.
Batra had earlier stunned world No. 2 Wang Manyu 6-11, 11-5, 11-7, 12-10 in the second round after opening her campaign with an 11-6, 13-11, 11-8 win over a higher-ranked Andreea Dragoman from Romania.
Batra had lost her status as India's highest-ranked women's singles paddler for the first time in years when Sreeja Akula, ranked 38, overtook her in the world rankings last month. Batra is now expected to regain her status as India's top women's singles paddler.
Manika Batra marches on
She beat world number 14 Nina Mittelham of Germany 11-6, 11-9, 11-7 to advance to the quarter-finals of Saudi Smash.
Batra will now face Japan's Hina Hayata for a place in the semi-finals.
:WTTpic.twitter.com/dA1vF7tzrd
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Campaign ends in doubles
Meanwhile, India's doubles campaign concluded on Tuesday at the 2024 Saudi Smash, pitting women's doubles pair Ayhika Mukherjee-Sutirtha Mukherjee, mixed doubles pair Harmeet Desai-Yashaswini Ghorpade and men's doubles pair Manav Thakkar-Manush Shah. lose in their respective matches.
While Ayhika and Sutirtha fell to Miyu Nagasaki and Kim Nayeong 11-6, 9-11, 12-10, 6-11, 8-11 in the round of 16 in 43 minutes, Shah and Thakkar Lubomir Pistej and Chan lost . Baldwin 20-18, 4-11, 6-11, 11-9, 7-11 at the same stage.
Meanwhile, Desai and Ghorpade lost 6-11, 10-12, 4-11 in consecutive matches to Chinese top seeds Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha in the mixed doubles quarter-finals.
