SHILLONG: In an all India affair, Anthony Amalraj and Manika Batra beat G Sathiyan and Mouma Das to grab the mixed doubles gold medal at the 12th South Asian Games at the JN Indoor Sports Hall here on Tuesday. Amalraj/ Batra overcame Sathiyan/ Das 11-5, 4-11, 11-5, 6-11, 12-10 in an epic battle.
With India’s victories in the men’s and women’s team events on Sunday, the hosts’ tally of gold medals in table tennis increased to three.
More of the yellow metal should follow on Wednesday as India has secured each and every place in the finals of the men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles and women’s doubles events
Earlier in the day, Sathiyan/Das had defeated Udaya Ranasinghe and Ruvini Kannangura of Sri Lanka 3-1 in the semifinals, while Amalraj/Batra got past Rohan Sirisena and Ishara Madhurangi (Sri Lanka) by the same margin. Sri Lanka thus claimed two bronze medals finishing as losing semifinalists.
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles, Amalraj and Sanil Shetty will take on Indian compatriots Sathiyan and Devesh Karia. Both pairs had defeated Sri Lankan opponents 3-0 in the semis.
The women’s doubles final will be between Das/K Shamini and Batra/Pooja Sahasrabudhe.
The men’s singles final will be played between Amalraj and Sathiyan, while Batra and Das will vie for the women’s singles gold.
