Indian Table Tennis player Ayhika Mukherjee Secures Biggest Win of Her Career

India’s Ayhika Mukherjee has won the biggest game of her career this week, when she toppled the current world champion Sun Yingsha at the World Team Championships, with the match ending 3-1 and the score: 12-10, 2-11, 13-11, 11-6 in Busan, South Korea, on Friday, 16 February, 2024. 

It was a feat that Indian media deemed a ‘stunning win’, and also the ‘greatest day for Indian table tennis’. As the underdog heading into the tie, Mukherjee performed above expectations as she stole the magnificent victory, which saw her Chinese opponent fall to her first defeat in 26 singles matches. 

“I really feel great to beat Sun Yingsha. Today was my day, she was doing great and I did very well. I was confident and I just told myself that I should enjoy the match,” said Mukherjee post-win on worldtabletennis.com. 

According to the World Table Tennis (WTT) website, Mukherjee had yet to secure a Women’s Singles win against a Top 20 opponent in her career. 

Meanwhile, Mukherjee wasn’t the only paddler to get a win on the day, as Indian teammate Sreeja Akula beat world number two Wang Yidi in her singles match. Akula got a 3-0 (11-7, 11-9, 13-11) over the Chinese player, as India bagged another big triumph on the day. 

“I was really happy beating Wang Yidi. We got the team spirit, and the players who were sitting on the bench supported, so we were so motivated,” said Akula.

Despite the historic day for India, they weren’t able to continue with more success in the competition, as they were knocked out of the event before they could claim their place in the quarterfinals. 

In other big results, Romania booked their ticket to the 2024 Olympic Games after their 3-0 win over Egypt on Day 6 of the competition. Speaking on worldtabletennis.com, Romanian paddler Adina Diaconu says her team knew a victory wouldn’t be easy but is more than pleased to have gotten the big 

“It was a very intense match as we expected. We played against Team Egypt, who are very good players who fight for every match. We took it very seriously and of course, we were stressed a little bit because it was the qualification for the Olympics,” said Diaconu. 

“Now we are very happy because this was our main goal, to qualify for Paris. Now of course we are going for the medal. We will prepare for the next match. I feel very good in this team, the atmosphere is very good.” 

Photo caption: Ayhika Mukherjee won the biggest game of her career this week. The Indian table tennis player toppled the current world champion Sun Yingsha at the World Team Championships, with the match ending 3-1 and the score: 12-10, 2-11, 13-11, 11-6 on Friday, 16 February 2024 in Busan, South Korea. Photo: RBI on X