After the Men’s Table Tennis Team bagged the first-ever medal in Asian Games in the form of a bronze, the Mixed Doubles pair of Manika Batra and Sharath Kamala also grabbed the bronze in their event. The Indian duo lost in the mixed doubles semi-finals 9-11, 5-11, 13-11, 4-11, 8-11 against the Chinese pair of Yingsha Sun and Chuqin Wangin.
Kamal and Batra played four matches in a da. In their pre-quarterfinal, they were up against the strong South Korean pairing of Lee Sangsu and Jeon Jihee. But the Indians fought their hearts out to beat them by 11-7, 7-11, 11-8, 10-12, 11-4.
In the quarterfinals, Kamal and Batra played against the North Korean pair of Cha Hyo Sim and An Ji Song. It was also a tough match but the Indian pair survived with a win over the Koreans defeating them by 11-4, 10-12, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8.
Sharath Kamal was ecstatic after winning the bronze medal. “It has been an unbelievable campaign so far. Not even in my wildest dreams I thought of winning a medal at the Asian Games. Now I have got too. I am still pinching myself,” said Kamal.
