Paddler Manika Batra created history on Saturday by securing a bronze medal ifor India in the Asian Cup table tennis tournament. She became the first Indian player to win a medal at the tournament after defeating Japan’s Hina Hayat, the world number six, in the third-place play-off match.
Delhi girl Manika speaks to us from Bangkok, “I am happy to win a medal and beat the best players here. I am really happy with my performance. Playing against them is a big thing and beating them is even bigger. I’m happy with my confidence and my game.”
Barely hours after losing her semifinal match to Mima Ito, Manika faced another top player from Japan in the third-place playoff. However, he claims that there was no pressure. He says: “Ito is a great player. After that match I just thought ki ab woh match ho gaya hai. Ek jagah baithke mein apne aapko klid kar rahi thi and I concentrated on my next match. I wasn’t sad or angry at the time, I thought I had to play one more game. So I knew I had to keep going, I played my best without any pressure.”
But amidst all the media interactions, we asked if she has already spoken to her family in Delhi. Manika replies, “I talk to them every day, especially mom. He sends me voice memos after every game. I am really happy that she is happy. They still cheer for me. I am really glad that my family is always there for me. Once I get back to Delhi, I will spend a day or two with my family, but then I will start training again and continue to improve my performance.”
However, he adds that winning or losing will always be part of the game, but it’s important to get past the phase when you’re not at your best. “Losing a match hits you. Players ki life mein ek phase aata hai jab kuch achha nahi ho raha hota a aap haar rahe hote ho but I think if you can overcome that then it is important. I think I’m back now. Manika is back. So I will continue to work like this. Wins, losses will happen again, I don’t focus on that, I focus on hard work,” says Manika, who was disappointed with her performance at the Commonwealth Games this year.
“During CWG and after CWG I was a bit down but maine statue life through nahi ho gayi hai. I knew I had to keep working hard. I knew yeh time aayega that sometimes I will lose because player dusra bhi jeetne aaya hai. I just have to keep doing what I’m doing and I did. I am really thankful to my supporters who were there for me, for those messages which motivated me a lot. I am grateful to them because it also matters to the players that people are there for you regardless of the outcome of the match,” she says.
Before signing off, Manika adds that although she has created history in Bangkok, she has a lot to learn from her mistakes. “I’ll write down everything I’ve learned here in my journal. After winning bronze aisa nahi hai ki yahan koi mistake nahi hui hai so I will keep working on it,” he shares.