Direct spot shut, but route to Paris remains open for teams

Both table tennis teams lost in the Rd of 16 but rankings route could see them make it to the Games

- Rutvick Mehta

The Indian men's and women's teams could not grab the direct Paris Olympics spot on offer for the quarter-finalists at the 2024 World Team Table Tennis Championships. Yet, they remain on track to get there.

Led by Manika Batra's quality opening win, the women's team went down fighting 3-1 to fourth-ranked Chinese Taipei in the Round of 16 on Wednesday in Busan after they'd beaten Italy 3-0 in the Round of 32 earlier in the day. The men, having sneaked past Kazakhstan 3-2 in the Round of 32, were blanked by hosts Korea again as the quarter-final entry proved a bridge too far.

The route to Paris though still remains open through the rankings route for both teams, confirmation of which will come on March 5 after the updated team rankings are out. The women, currently ranked 17, will pocket more crucial ranking points on the back of a creditable outing in this tournament in which they won four matches and lost two (to defending champions China and Chinese Taipei). The 15th-ranked men, who had a mixed bag of three victories and as many defeats, are also likely to sneak in.

"Both teams stand a very good chance of qualifying for the Olympics through their world rankings. We will have to wait till we receive the confirmation and updated rankings on March 5," said Kamlesh Mehta, Table Tennis Federation of India's secretary general.