It was a good showing, even if something wasn't quite right. This summer in Tokyo, India's table tennis team had its best ever showing at the Olympics. Manika Batra (pictured), and Sharath Kamal Achanta for the men's side, both reached the third round in singles. While the historic showing cemented India's rising prominence in the international arena, it also displayed some of its internal dysfunctions on a commensurate global scale. During Manika Batra's historic run, a few eyebrows were raised when she refused to grant her coach, Soumyadeep Roy, admission to coach her courtside. Based solely on appearances, the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) was not pleased with Batra's perceived petualnce. "Before she boarded the flight to Tokyo, she very well knew that her personal coach did not have field of play access," said TTFI secretary general Arun Banerjee. "Therefore, she should not have acted the way she did." The TTFI went on to issue Batra an order to show cause, demanding an explanation from Batra within 10 days. Backed into a corner by her country's governing table tennis agency, Batra forced to either sing or find a new homeland. Given no realistic alternative, Batra spilled the beans on her coach. "The national coach had pressurised me during the qualification tournament in Doha in March 2021 to concede my match to his student to enable her to qualify for Olympics—in short, to indulge in match-fixing," Batra explained. During the 2020 Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament, Batra lost to countrywoman Sutirtha Mukherjee, 4-2, granting Mukherjee automatic qualification. Batra qualified by dint of her world ranking. "From my side, I did not promise to oblige him and promptly reported this matter to a TTFI official," explained Batra. "I decided not to obey the unethical command of the national coach. But his intimidation and pressure had its effect on my mental frame and consequently my performance." Batra described an awkward 20-minute encounter with the coach Roy and his student in her hotel room. Given such circumstances, it is quite understandable why she would not want any help from such an influence. "During the Olympics, I wanted to keep away from the demoralising effect of such a coach," said Batra. "Because, as a player representing India, it was my duty to serve my country in the best possible way." Given the evidence that the TTFI was aware of such allegations as far back as March, then not only failed to defend Batra but publicly threw her under the bus, it seems it is they and not she who should be issued an order to show cause.

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