The year 2021 will be remembered for the exploits of Manika Batra and G Sathiyan. The mixed doubles pair clinched the WTT Contender in Budapest in August and went from strength to strength before breaking into top-15 in world rankings. The pair, currently ranked No. 10 in the world, are training together in Chennai for the last few days as part of a short camp ahead of the tournaments in Muscat in Singapore next month.
“I am here in Chennai just to train with Sathiyan on our mixed doubles games. We have seen success as a mixed doubles team, so our primary objective here is to get more training time together before we race to a very busy year ahead,” Manika told TOI.
The pair will kick off the new season with the WTT Contender in Muscat to be held from March 2-5. From thereon, they will be in action at the WTT Smash in Singapore from March 7-20.
Manika is making full use of the short trip in Chennai.
“We are currently training twice every day with each session of at least 2 hours to get as much time together in Chennai. Our goal is to better our combinations and movement while I am also working on my fitness separately as I also need to stay fit for my singles and doubles games too,” said Manika, ranked No. 50 in the women’s singles category.
Interestingly, the session in Chennai is the first time the two have practiced together at length.
“Sathiyan and I have tasted success in the past but we never really got enough time to train together. So this trip was specifically (undertaken) to get some quality training time together. I know for doubles I need to be more fit and also I have to focus on my singles practice to support my partner, so I am here to train for few days and then will go back and train for singles,” Manika mentioned.
On his part, Sathiyan felt the training sessions will help them understand each other’s game better.
“Sessions such as this becomes crucial with tournaments lined up. The ultimate goal is to win medals and tournaments, and training together will go a long way in helping us achieve that,” Sathiyan said.
Manika joined adidas' elite athlete roster with the launch of its 'Impossible Is Nothing' campaign. "I hope with my association with adidas, I can empower and encourage women to see possibilities irrespective of the challenges so that the nation can witness many more 'golden girls'," Manika said.
