Archive · 5 Aug 2026
Syndrela Das Beats Idol Manika Batra, Creating Her Own Legacy
Syndrela Das is a 16-year-old table tennis player from Kolkata, India.
She recently beat Manika Batra, a famous player she has idolised since childhood.
Manika said she was really happy with how Syndrela played.
Syndrela also won her quarter-final at the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships against the top-seeded player from Australia.
Now she is the youngest player on India's team for the Asian Games, which will be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, next month.
She has won many junior titles, including three national age-group championships in one year.
A broken wrist in 2021 could have stopped her, but she used it as motivation to come back stronger.
Away from the table, she studies mathematics and psychology in school.
Her big dream is to go to the Olympics and win a gold medal.
Her coach and an Olympian friend believe the sky is the limit for her.
Sixteen-year-old Syndrela Das beat her childhood idol Manika Batra 3-0 in Goa during her maiden UTT edition.
She defeated Australian top seed Yangzi Liu (world No. 31) in the Commonwealth TT Championships quarter-final.
She is the youngest member of India's Asian Games 2026 squad and won singles and doubles medals at the Asian Youth Championships.
In 2023 she claimed triple National Ranking age-group titles (U15, U17, U19 singles) and this year reached the women's singles final.
She aspires to qualify for LA 2028 and win Olympic gold, and studies mathematics alongside the humanities stream in Standard 12.
- Who
- Syndrela Das, a 16-year-old Kolkata table tennis player; her idol Manika Batra; her coach Soumyadeep Roy; and two-time Olympian Soumyajit Ghosh.
- What
- Syndrela beat Manika Batra 3-0 in her UTT debut and won the Commonwealth TT Championships quarter-final against top seed Yangzi Liu, and is set to debut for India at the Asian Games 2026.
- When
- Recent tournaments; the Asian Games 2026 take place next month in Aichi-Nagoya.
- Where
- Goa (UTT edition), the Commonwealth TT Championships, and Aichi-Nagoya, Japan (upcoming Asian Games); she is from Kolkata.
- Why
- Her fearless, aggressive playing style, hard work, and mental toughness have made her one of India's most exciting table tennis talents, with ambitions of qualifying for LA 2028 and winning Olympic gold.
- Player
- Syndrela Das
- Age
- 16
- Hometown
- Kolkata
- Win vs Manika Batra
- 3-0 in Goa in her maiden UTT edition
- Quarter-final win
- Beat world No. 31 top seed Yangzi Liu at the Commonwealth TT Championships
- Asian Games 2026
- Youngest member of India's squad; event in Aichi-Nagoya next month
- Asian Youth Championships
- Singles and doubles medals
- Ambition
- Qualify for LA 2028 and win Olympic gold