Star Indian table tennis player Manika Batra cruised to the second round of the World Championships with a dominant straight-game win while Manav Thakkar also made a confident start to his singles campaign in Doha on Sunday.

It was a mixed day for India as several others, including G Sathiyan crashed out of the tournament.

Seeded 22nd, Manika registered a commanding 4-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-8, 11-2) victory over Nigeria’s Fatima Bello in a women’s singles fixture that lasted just 24 minutes. She will be up against Korea’s Park Gahyeon in the round of 64.

India’s top-ranked male singles player, Thakkar, also began in style, defeating New Zealand’s Timothy Choi 4-1 (11-3, 11-8, 6-11, 11-7, 14-12) in his men’s singles opening round.

In doubles action, the ninth-seeded pair of Manush Shah and Diya Chitale made a strong start, registering a comprehensive 3-0 (11-2, 11-7, 11-6) win over Algeria’s Mehdi Bouloussa and Malissa Nasri.

However, it was a forgettable debut for 18-year-old Ankur Bhattacharjee, who exited in the first round after a 1-4 (11-4, 7-11, 9-11, 10-12, 8-11) defeat to Hong Kong’s Lam Siu Hang in his men’s singles outing.

The seasoned Sathiyan endured a tough outing as well, bowing out with a straight-game defeat to France’s Thibault Poret, who won 4-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-7, 11-6).

But it was disappointment for the men’s doubles duo of Harmeet Desai and G Sathiyan who bowed out in the opening round, losing 1-3 (9-11, 12-10, 14-16, 10-12) to Austria’s Maciej Kolodziejczyk and Moldova’s Vladislav Ursu.

Desai also faced heartbreak in the mixed doubles, partnering Yashaswini Ghorpade. The 14th-seeded Indian pair failed to capitalise on a 2-0 lead and also squandered three match points to lose 2-3 (11-8, 11-6, 10-12, 8-11, 10-12) to France’s Thibault Poret and Leana Hochart.

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