As a hectic year of sports gallops to the finish line, India’s top athletes pause and reflect; tell the stories of their podium highs, battered bodies and shattered dreams. In a special series, some look back with fondness, a few others with regrets. But all with the hope – and wish – of a better 2025.
From the time ‘that’ match ended, I keep getting asked the same thing a lot. Yes, I was leading 10-6 and 10-5 in the first two games of the Paris Olympics Round-of-16 match against the World No. 1 from China, Sun Yingsha. And yet, I lost the match.
I don’t want it to become my identity.
Honestly, no, I wasn’t over-thinking or anything. There’s no time for that in table tennis. She (Yingsha) just raised her game and went on an all-out attack. I didn’t expect that. Looking back, I should’ve focused more on myself and taken a few risks. I was too passive and that’s why perhaps I couldn’t convert those points.
But after all, that’s sport.
Paris 2024 Olympics – Table Tennis – Women’s Singles Round of 32 – South Paris Arena 4, Paris, France – July 31, 2024. Sreeja Akula of India reacts as she wins her round of 32 match against Jian Zeng of Singapore. (Reuters Photo)
The entire Olympic experience was surreal. When I entered the Village, I was glad to make my dream come true. But I didn’t just want to participate. I wanted to make a mark. I wanted to record a few good upsets.
I went with that kind of mindset and when the singles started, everybody was telling me that the Olympics is something different, once you get into the arena your hands will be cold and you have to overcome all that.
However, when I went into the arena I felt as if it was just another tournament. I felt okay, this was the Olympics but it was the same opponents I had been seeing in other tournaments, it was the same table, the same ball. So, I decided to keep everything away and focus on the ball, focus on my game, and that worked really well.
I played every match as if that was going to be the last of my career. When I saw the draw and knew that I would have to face Sun Yingsha, I wasn’t scared. I was in a great rhythm. I was focusing on my technique, my strokes, and what I had to play rather than what she was going to do. Okay, I knew she was World No. 1. She was going to play some extraordinary shots. I was well prepared for all that and I kept telling myself that I too have worked as hard as she did. Technically and even mentally I was at my peak.
Paris 2024 Olympics – Table Tennis – Women’s Singles Round of 32 – South Paris Arena 4, Paris, France – July 31, 2024. Sreeja Akula of India in action during her round of 32 match against Jian Zeng of Singapore. (Reuters Photo)
Yeah, I would’ve liked to win those games. And who knows what might’ve happened but I can’t sit back and feel sorry for myself. I surpassed all expectations this year.
I have to admit that 2024 was the best year of my career, it was a year full of milestones. And it started with a leap of faith.
Who would’ve thought that deciding to travel halfway around the world to play a WTT Feeder in Corpus Christi would have had so much impact on my career? That feeder title set the tone for a stellar year in which I won another Feeder in Beirut before winning the Lagos Contender before the Olympics.
People have asked me what I’ve done differently but honestly, it was not something I did in this particular year. It was the hard work and effort I’ve put in over a period of time. And it showed up at the right time.
I have to credit my coach Somnath Ghosh, my parents, my mental and physical trainer, my support team at Go Sports and of course my sponsors. It’s their success as much as mine.
India’s Sreeja Akula plays against Sweden’s Christina Kallberg during a women’s singles round of 64 table tennis game at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP/PTI)
I went to Corpus Christi out of desperation. I just wanted to win matches at the international level because in the last two years, I was winning hardly one or two matches and barely even qualifying for the main draw. Mentally it was getting very difficult for me because I wanted to do well, I wanted to win good matches.
I did not have any such expectations at the start of the year but I always wanted to play in the Olympics. I always wanted to be in the top 20, top 30 of the world rankings. That was my aim but I did not expect to come, I did not expect everything to come in one year.
Immediately after the Olympics, I faced my real big challenge. I suffered an injury that forced me to take a break. I felt it in Paris but the high of the event didn’t let it bother my game.
In a way, the injury was a blessing as it allowed me to rest both physically and mentally. I could just reflect on what I have done all these years, the way I prepared, the way I played. I could watch good videos, I had some time off to do different things. I did some drawing, I love to draw, and it’s the only hobby I have. Finding time to do it felt great.
All that helped me a lot but it was again difficult to get back to the game because I lost a bit of strength while recovering from the injury.
India’s Sreeja Akula plays against Sinagapore’s Zeng Jian during a women’s singles round of 32 table tennis game at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, July 31, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP/PTI)
But I’m back now. And though 2025 isn’t an Olympic year, I want to start it the same way I started 2024. I’ve reached the top-25 of World rankings and this year is going to be about pushing harder. Top-20, Top-15, higher? Anything is possible.
Looking forward to 2025
This has been a breakthrough year for Sreeja, with the continental title as well as her consistent performances in the WTT events and also the Olympics. It propelled her to women’s singles world number 22, the highest rank held by an Indian. In 2025, she’ll aim to go a step higher and enter the top-20 — and stay there. The increased number of WTT events give her more opportunities for a podium finish but the ultimate target would be the World Championships.
Key dates: World Championships, Doha, May 17 to 25
I’m Manas Ranjan Sahoo: Founder of “Webtirety Software”. I’m a Full-time Software Professional and an aspiring entrepreneur, dedicated to growing this platform as large as possible. I love to Write Blogs on Software, Mobile applications, Web Technology, eCommerce, SEO, and about My experience with Life.
