London: India’s campaign at the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships 2026 ended disappointingly as both the men’s and women’s teams lost in the round of 32 at the OVO Arena Wembley in London. The Indian men’s team faced a 3-0 defeat against Austria, while the women’s team lost 3-1 to the United States. This marked the end of what had been promising runs in the group stages.
In the men’s match, World No. 51 Manush Shah fought hard in the first game but narrowly lost 3-2 (6-11, 11-7, 11-3, 8-11, 13-11) to Olympian Robert Gardos. This close defeat was crucial, as India found it difficult to recover afterwards.
World No. 39 Manav Thakkar lost 3-0 (11-7, 11-5, 11-6) to Daniel Habesohn. Olympian Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, ranked 42nd, also lost in straight games, 3-0 (11-5, 11-8, 11-9), to Andreas Levenko. Austria comfortably secured the tie.
Despite the early exit, the Indian men showed strong form in the group stage. They topped their Stage 1 B group with dominant 3-0 wins against Tunisia and Guatemala, and a comeback victory over Slovakia to move on to the knockout phase.
The women’s team entered the round of 32 with confidence after leading their group, but found the Americans too strong that day. World No. 61 Yashaswini Ghorpade lost 3-0 (11-8, 11-8, 11-7) to Sally Moyland in the first match.
India responded with Olympian Manika Batra, ranked 48th, levelling the tie with a 3-1 (11-2, 11-7, 8-11, 11-4) win over Jessica Reyes Lai.
However, the momentum did not last. Diya Chitale, ranked 95th, lost 3-0 (11-8, 11-7, 13-11) to Lily Zhang. Batra returned for the crucial fourth match but fell 3-1 (10-12, 11-9, 11-3, 13-11) to Moyland, sealing India’s exit.
Earlier, the Indian women impressed by topping their Stage 1 B group with wins over Ukraine, Uganda, and Rwanda to reach the knockout stage.
A total of 64 teams competed in the championships, divided into 16 groups, with the top two from each moving on to Stage 2. While India showed promise in the initial phase, the knockout stage proved too challenging this time.
First held as a standalone event in 2000, these prestigious championships will conclude on May 10.
(IANS)
