World Team Table Tennis Championships: India men’s team beats NZ 3-0, seals passage to knockouts

After the women’s team advanced to the knockout stages on Tuesday, the men’s team emulated the feat after a comfortable 3-0 win over New Zealand in Busan.

Harmeet Desai got the side off to an ideal start with a straight-game win over Timothy Choi. Desai prevailed 11-5, 11-1, 11-6.

Sathiyan Gnanasekaran built on the momentum and pulled India two clear, defeating Alfred Dela Pena 11-3, 11-7, 11-6. In the third-rubber, Manush was tested by Maxwell Henderson who won the opening two games 12-10, 11-6. But a spirited comeback saw Shah stretch the game the full distance and prevail 11-4, 11-8, 11-6.

The win took India past Chile, helping it advance as the third team from Group 3.

India faces Kazakhstan in the Round of 32. Korea, which got a bye in the first knockout round courtesy of its top spot, awaits the winner of the tie.