Making 'unbelievable things believable', the Ayhika way

The India No. 7 was an inspired pick for the world team event and she repaid the faith, beating the Chinese world No.1

- Rutvick Mehta

Ayhika Mukherjee had a rather audacious request to her teammates and coach a night before the Indian women's team was to begin its 2024 World Team Table Tennis Championships campaign against top seeds China.

"I said to them that I want to play Sun Yingsha. Please put me with her if possible and plan the strategy in a way that I can play with her," Ayhika says.

Sun Yingsha is the world's topranked women's singles player, the best among the Chinese and someone who had never been beaten in this tournament. Most players would be quietly glad to avoid crossing her path. Ayhika instead asked for exactly that.

"Because she is the best in the world-what else could be more exciting and challenging," she says, smiling. The eagerness to fight in the mind translated into execution to win on the table. The Indian, ranked 155 in singles, produced one of the most remarkable results of the prestigious team event in stunning the world No. 1 in the opening rubber 3-1.

That, along with Sreeja Akula getting past No. 2 Wang Yidi in a 3-2 defeat to the eventual champions, set the tone for the Indian women's outing in the team Worlds. It ended with a Round of 16 finish and them being on the doorsteps of the Paris Olympics berth through the rankings quota.