A reputed Commonwealth Games gold medallist, a two-time Olympian and winner of several other honours, Manika Batra is one of the current shining stars of Indian table tennis. She is India’s number two in women after Sreeja Akula and her world rank is 28 as of February 2025, as per the World Table Tennis rankings.
EARLY LIFE:
Born on 15 June in 1995, Manika’s tryst with TT began from an early age of four, with her elder siblings also having tried their hand with the game. Manika’s initial claim to fame by winning the Under-8 state level event made her pursue her liking towards the game quite seriously.
Following her win, Batra decided to train under renowned coach Sandeep Gupta who recommended her to join Hans Raj Model School where he ran his academy, and she followed the footsteps.
She studied at the Jesus and Mary College in Delhi for one year before deciding to drop out and focus on pursuing table tennis professionally. This Delhi-born Manika turned down numerous modelling offers in her adolescence to concentrate on the sport.
CAREER:
A dynamic young Manika made her debut on the international platform at the Chile Open in 2011 when she was mere sixteen years old, where her participation earned her a silver medal in the under-21 category.
Manika Batra experienced her big fame at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia when she bagged four medals, out of which two were gold. Prior to that, she had won three gold medals at the 2016 South Asian Games and also made her Olympic debut in the same year at the Rio Games.
As quoted by Manika herself, similar to her idol Achanta S. Kamal, Manika qualified for her maiden Olympics when she was just 21 years old. Despite being knocked out in the initial rounds itself, the young woman had a good learning curve in her career trajectory.
Her quick acceleration saw her achieve one of the greatest accomplishments when she won the women’s singles gold in the 2018 event. The win made Manika the first Indian woman table tennis player to win an individual gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
Manika also secured a bronze medal in the mixed doubles category along with Sharath Kamal at the 2018 Asian Games. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics event, she became the first woman table tennis player from India to make it to the round of 32 in the singles category, a feat which had not been accomplished until then.
Manika also was an integral part of the contingent at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics and was highly appreciated for her stellar performance in the individual and doubles category. Batra reached the Round of 16 of the women’s singles to become the first Indian paddler to qualify in a single Olympics event.
Manika also secured a bronze medal in the mixed doubles category along with Sharath Kamal at the 2018 Asian Games. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics event, she became the first woman table tennis player from India to make it to the round of 32 in the singles category, a feat which had not been accomplished until then.
Manika also was an integral part of the contingent at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics and was highly appreciated for her stellar performance in the individual and doubles category. Batra reached the Round of 16 of the women’s singles to become the first Indian paddler to qualify in a single Olympics event.
AWARDS & ACCOLADES:
Manika holds the record for being awarded ITTF’s ‘Breakthrough Star’ recognition and remains the only Indian table tennis player to receive it till date. In addition, she was awarded India’s second highest sport award – Arjuna Award in the year 2018.
She was felicitated with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award in 2020 by the Sports Ministry of India. Achieving such noteworthy accomplishments at such a young age is truly commendable, as Manika definitely has a long career graph ahead.
My Perspective:
Although table tennis as a sport is not as highly popular or hugely followed like cricket or football, it has gained prominence as a result of the laurels brought by the emerging and rising players on the block.
Manika aspires to do for table tennis in India what PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal did for badminton in the country. This inspiration is heartening and now more than ever, the female players of our country have gained the deserving recognition and fame, which makes their hard work evident to thousands of people in the country.
Manika has stunning looks and physique which has put her on the cover of some famous magazines and impressed the people through her striking features. Manika is quite rooted in her approach and aims to continuously excel in her craft by improving her game one day at a time.
