India Women Edge Australia 3-2 to ensure medal at Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships

India’s women’s team produced a gritty performance to overcome Australia 3-2 in a thrilling second-stage league clash at the 22nd Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships at the Thyagaraj Stadium on Tuesday.

The victory followed India’s dominant 3-0 win over Sri Lanka, which had already guaranteed them a medal. The hosts will now face Canada in their final Group F fixture on Wednesday, with momentum firmly on their side.

India endured a difficult start against Australia as Yashaswini Ghorpade went down to Yangzi Liu in straight games. Despite the 0-3 defeat, Yashaswini pushed her opponent hard in the opening game before narrowly losing 13-15.

Second-seeded Sreeja Akula brought India back into the contest with a composed 12-10, 7-11, 11-5, 11-9 victory over Min Yung Jee to level the tie at 1-1.

The turning point came in the third rubber, where Sutirtha Mukherjee displayed remarkable resilience against Constantina Psihogios. After taking the opening game, Sutirtha lost the next two to trail 1-2 but fought back brilliantly to claim the final two games. She eventually sealed a dramatic 11-8, 9-11, 8-11, 11-8, 13-11 victory, giving India a crucial 2-1 advantage.

Australia refused to back down as Yangzi Liu outclassed Sreeja Akula 11-8, 11-5, 11-5 in the fourth rubber to level the tie once again.

With everything riding on the deciding match, Yashaswini Ghorpade responded in style. She produced a composed display to defeat Min Yung Jee in straight games, clinching the decisive fifth rubber and securing India’s 3-2 victory to maintain their unbeaten run in the tournament.

Elsewhere in the competition, top-seeded Singapore suffered a major setback after losing 3-0 to Malaysia. Ai Xin Tee, Karen Iye Anak Dick and Alice Li Sian Chang all registered straight-game victories to hand Malaysia an emphatic win and signal their title credentials.

In other group-stage encounters, England cruised to a 3-0 victory over Maldives, while New Zealand defeated Bangladesh by the same margin to move closer to qualification for the knockout rounds.