They say it’s more difficult to stay at the top than reaching there. That ability is often one of the major difference between a good and a great athlete.
If the first week of the CEAT Ultimate Table Tennis’ (UTT) second edition is any indication, Manika Batra has certainly taken a big step towards greatness.
No doubt, the UTT format — which has three games in a match unlike the best-of-five or -seven games — is different to that on the ITTF ProTour events.
Still, to account for two top-30 players in what is her first competitive appearance on Indian soil after her phenomenal feat at the Commonwealth Games is no mean feat for Manika.
Donning the Dabang Smashers TTC jersey, Manika started her UTT campaign by stunning World No. 18 Sofia Polcanova of Warriors TTC over the weekend. And the lanky girl from Delhi carried on the momentum by upstaging Sweden’s Matilda Ekholm on Monday to set the tone for the Smashers’ thumping win against defending champion Falcons TTC.
Despite Ekholm being the lower-ranked of her two preys so far, Manika was more satisfied with her win on Tuesday.
“That’s primarily because I lost to her in straight games during the World Championship (team event) last month,” Manika told The Hindu .
For a player like Manika who relies heavily on the advantage from her long-pimpled rubber, the likelihood of being found out at the highest level has increased after her twin gold medals at the CWG. However, she displayed great ability to control the pace of the game even against opponents who are faster and higher-ranked and stifle them.
“I know that after the CWG, they would be continuously trying to sort me out but I have been working hard to fox them. I am glad so far it has worked out for me,” she said.
With Smashers topping the table after the first leg of the tournament, Manika couldn’t have asked for the UTT juggernaut to roll on to her hometown Delhi.
“I hope the crowd will be bigger than in Pune and I am confident of putting up a good show in front of the home support,” she signed off.
