India's table tennis star Manika Batra has been dropped from the national squad for the Asian Games due to her absence from domestic events, which has affected her ranking. The 20th Asian Games will be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan from September 19 to October 4.
Manika, who has won multiple medals at the Commonwealth Games and a historic mixed doubles bronze at the 2018 Asian Games, is currently India's second highest-ranked female player at 51, behind Sreeja Akula who is 45th in the latest ITTF rankings.
The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) selects players based on international and national rankings, giving 50 percent weightage to national rankings, 40 percent to world rankings, and 10 percent to the discretion of the selection committee.
The women's team will be led by Sreeja, with Yashaswini Ghorpade, Diya Chitale, Sutirtha Mukherjee, and Syndrela Das forming a competitive unit. The men's team will be spearheaded by G. Sathiyan and Harmeet Desai, alongside Manav Vikas Thakkar and Manush Shah.
The selection highlights India's growing strength across both genders, with the federation rewarding consistency and performance over an extended period.
