CHENNAI: After a three-year association with Manika Batra in mixed doubles, paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran has mutually parted ways with her. Tamil Nadu player Sathiyan will combine forces with Sreeja Akula, with their partnership set to start at the end of this season or beginning of next.
Sathiyan and Manika entered the top-five in the world rankings. But things did not go their way in the past few months as they failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics. This could have led to the decision. "We played quite well for three years, but the last few months were not good. After playing together in an Olympic cycle, we thought that we needed a change. We wanted new partners and see how it goes; we can come together again if needed.
