Tokyo: Indian paddler Manika Batra stormed into the second round of women’s singles category at the Tokyo Olympics with a straight-sets win over Great Britain’s Tin-Tin Ho here on Saturday. With the win, she became the first Indian woman to win a match at the Olympics since 1992.
After a disappointing outing in the Mixed Doubles, Manika worked her angles well and drew errors from the 22-year-old and won the first game with a comfortable 11-7 margin.
Later, Tin-Tin Ho put on an improved performance in the third game and pushed Manika Batra harder. The 26-year-old, however, saved three game points before wrapping the game up 12-10.
Manika Batra trailed again in the fourth game but surged ahead and concluded the one-side match by winning it 11-9.
Batra will now face Ukraine’s Margaryta Pesotska, a former European Championships silver medallist, in the second round.
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