NEW DELHI, July 30: Manush Shah produced a heroic performance as India's men's team overcame a resilient Malaysia 3-2 in the final to lift the 22nd Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships title here on Thursday.
Earlier, the women's squad thrashed Malaysia without breaking a sweat, wrapping up the final with a 3-0 verdict at the Thyagaraj Stadium.
It was a tricky final for the men's team, especially after their loss to Malaysia in the league phase.
India left out Harmeet Desai from the lineup, while the Malaysians brought in their second player to play the third rubber.
The tie appeared headed for a comfortable Indian win after Manav Thakkar raced to a 2-0 lead over left-handed Qi Shen Wong in the fourth rubber. However, the Malaysian, ranked No. 204, staged a remarkable comeback to beat world No. 41 Manav 2-3 and level the contest at 2-2, leaving the title to be decided by the fifth and final rubber featuring world No. 40 Manush Shah.
Manush, who had earlier beaten Wong in a five-game battle after recovering from a 4-7 deficit in the decider by winning seven straight points, carried that confidence into the decisive match. He dominated from start to finish against Javen Choong, securing a comfortable straight-game victory to seal the gold medal for India.
Earlier, Sathiyan lost badly to Hong Yu Tey, including the third deuce game (10-12) of the third rubber after being just a game point away (10-8).
In the women's final, India blanked Malaysia 3-0.
Though she dropped a game after leading 2-1, Swastika did well to put India up.
Sreeja Akula, who has dropped to No. 67 in the world rankings since her selection into the Asian Games squad, led 2-1 before letting Karen level at 2-2, then wrap up quickly in the decider.
Then Yashaswini, who is now No. 64, put aside the first-game loss before mustering the courage to send Alice Lee Sian Chang 3-1.
The winners received a prize purse of USD 10,000 for their efforts.
Results (Team Finals)
Men: India bt Malaysia 3-2 (Manav Thakkar bt Javen Choong 12-10, 11-7, 5-11, 11-5, Manush Shah bt Qi Shen Wong 11-13, 11-9, 11-7, 2-11, 11-7, G. Sathiyan lost to Hong Yu Tey 7-11, 8-11, 10-12, Manav lost to Wong 11-4, 8-11, 11-8, 7-11, 1-11, Manush bt Choong 11-7, 11-4, 11-4).
Women: India bt Malaysia 3-0 (Swastika Ghosh bt Ai Xin Tee 11-7, 11-2, 9-11, 11-9, Sreeja Akula bt Karen Lyne Anak Dick 9-11, 11-6, 11-4, 5-11, 11-3, Yashaswini Ghorpade bt Alice Lee Sian Chang 7-11, 11-3, 17-15, 11-5). (PTI)
