Sreeja Akula Makes History at WTT Contender Lagos

The Indian team wrapped up their journey at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender Lagos with a total of nine medals, including three golds, one silver, and five bronze medals.

Sreeja Akula’s Historic Win

Star paddler Sreeja Akula, who is set to compete in the Paris 2024 Olympics, made history by winning the WTT Contender singles title in Lagos. She became the first Indian to win the singles crown by defeating China’s Ding Yijie 4-1 in a thrilling match with scores of 10-12, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.

Other Notable Performances

In the women’s singles, Ayhika and Suthirtha Mukherjee secured bronze medals after losing in the semifinals. Sreeja Akula defeated Sutirtha Mukherjee 3-2 in a close semifinal match to reach the final, while Ayhika Mukherjee lost to Ding Yijie 2-3 in the other semifinal.

In the women’s doubles, Sreeja Akula and Archana Girish Kamath won gold by defeating Yashaswini Ghorpade and Diya Parag Chitale 3-0 in the finals. Ghorpade and Diya had to settle for silver. Sreeja and Archana had earlier defeated Ayhika and Suthirtha Mukherjee 3-0 in the semifinals, earning Ayhika and Suthirtha a bronze medal.

India’s third gold came in the men’s doubles, where Harmeet Desai and Manav Thakkar defeated Nigeria’s Olajide Omotayo and Azeez Solanke 3-0 to win the title, becoming the first Indian men’s pair to secure a Contender title.

India also won two bronze medals in the mixed doubles competition, with pairs Archana Kamath and Manav Thakkar, and Manush Shah and Diya Chitale, both losing in their respective semifinal matches.

Event Details

The WTT Contender Lagos took place from June 19 to 23 in Nigeria.