Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships 2026: India Men, Women register 3-0 wins on opening day in New Delhi

New Delhi: Hosts India enjoyed the perfect start to their campaign at the 22nd Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships, with both the men’s and women’s teams opening their title bids in dominant fashion. Playing in front of the home crowd at the Thyagraj Stadium, the Indian paddlers won their opening ties without dropping a match, setting the tone for the tournament.

Indian men’s team begins with commanding win over Zimbabwe

Top-seeded India defeated Zimbabwe 3-0 in their opening Group A fixture.

Commonwealth Games medallist Manav Thakkar gave India the ideal start with an 11-3, 11-2, 11-6 victory over Tayenda Mumvuma. Veteran Harmeet Desai then extended India’s lead by beating Tapiwa Musarurwa 11-5, 11-4, 11-5.

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Youngster Payas Jain completed the clean sweep with a comfortable 11-3, 11-3, 11-8 win against Vikram Singh.

In the other Group A match, Malaysia also made a winning start by defeating Wales 3-0.

Australia, England, Canada and Singapore also register wins

Elsewhere in the men’s competition, Australia and Namibia received 3-0 walkovers against Jamaica and South Africa respectively in Group B.

England defeated Cyprus 3-0 in Group C, while New Zealand also secured a 3-0 victory over the Falkland Islands.

In Group D, Canada beat Scotland 3-0 and Singapore registered a similar 3-0 win over Northern Ireland.

Indian women’s team cruises past Maldives

India’s women’s team also enjoyed a dominant start by beating the Maldives 3-0 in their opening Group B encounter.

Sutirtha Mukherjee put India ahead with an 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 win over Fatimath Dheema Ali. Yashaswini Ghorpade followed it up by defeating Ayshath Rafa Nazim 11-2, 11-5, 11-7.

Swastika Ghosh wrapped up the tie in style with an impressive 11-3, 11-5, 11-2 victory over Mishka Mohamed Ibrahim.

Singapore survives Sri Lanka scare in women’s event

The biggest contest of the opening day came in Women’s Group A, where top seeds Singapore were pushed all the way by Sri Lanka before escaping with a hard-fought 3-2 victory.

Janelle Rui En gave Singapore the lead by defeating Swarna Sri Bandara 11-7, 11-13, 14-12, 11-7. Sri Lanka responded through Tamadi K. Alagiyawadu, who overcame Eudora Eng Kee in a thrilling five-game battle.

Singapore regained the advantage after Zhi Xian Chong defeated Yoshini Vidarast 11-9, 11-7, 11-8. However, Swarna Sri Bandara levelled the tie once again by beating Eudora Eng 11-8, 11-3, 11-0.

With the tie evenly poised, Janelle Rui En held her nerve to beat Tamadi K. Alagiyawadu 11-8, 11-5, 11-6 and secure victory for Singapore.

Northern Ireland edge South Africa, Australia and England win comfortably

In the remaining women’s matches, Northern Ireland defeated South Africa 3-2 in Group B.

Australia and England both registered convincing 3-0 victories over Bangladesh and Cyprus respectively in Group C.

In Group D, Canada received a walkover against Botswana, while Malaysia completed a 3-0 win over Scotland to begin their campaign on a high.