Not among the top individual players in the national team in 2023, the young Indians did not have partners to dabble with in doubles. The beginning of the Manush Shah and Diya Chitale partnership was more out of chance. And so they thought of teaming up and giving mixed doubles a shot.
The young Indian combine, ranked 8th in the WTT mixed doubles charts, was consistently solid against the world No.4 Hong Kong pair. Even the solitary game they dropped was a tight affair in the 11-6, 13-15, 11-9, 11-5 outcome. No Indian has ever gone better than bronze in the sport at the Asian Games, and even though beating the mighty Chinese might be an uphill task, Manush, 25, and Diya, 23, have already put themselves in a select club.
They began winning titles at the WTT Feeder level, which forms a springboard to the highest level on the WTT tour. And they sprang up alright, capturing the WTT Contender Tunis title the same year. More significantly, they defeated Japan’s top pair of Miwa Harimoto and Sora Matsushima in the final.
The Indians will take on China’s second-ranked pair of Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha in the semi-final later on Friday.
Asian Games Aspirations for Mixed Doubles Pair
Diya and Manush are positioning themselves as strong contenders for the upcoming Asian Games, building on their recent success as one of the top eight mixed doubles pairs in the world.
In April, Diya expressed their commitment, stating, “Winning an Asian Games medal is something we are working hard towards.” Manush echoed this determination, emphasizing their youth and readiness to capitalize on it, saying, “We will go into this Asian Games as strong contenders and we will try to make the best use of our youth.”
Their focus and preparation highlight their ambition to secure a medal at the prestigious event.
The men’s team scripted an Asian first for TT in the 2018 edition, from where Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra also returned with bronze in mixed doubles. In Hangzhou three years ago, the women’s doubles pair of Sutirtha Mukherjee and Ayhika Mukherjee went on a stunning run to win bronze. At Aichi-Nagoya, Manush and Diya have kept the doubles success streak going for Indian TT.
