Paddler Archana enters YOG semis

India's Archana Girish Kamath had to summon all her skills, energy and nerves to overcome Azerbaijans Nign Jing 13-11, 8-11, 6-11, 11-3, 6-11, 12-10, 11-7 to enter the women's singles table tennis semi-finals at the 3rd Youth Olympics Games (YOG) here on Wednesday.

She will take on China's Yingsha Sun in the semi-finals. A win will put her into the medal round straightaway, failing which the Indian will have a shot at the play-off for the bronze medal.

After taking the extended first game, Archana was hit back by Ning Jing, a Chinese origin player turning out for Azerbaijan, who went 2-1 up to mount pressure on the Indian. But Archana was up to the task and levelled at 3-3 before dropping the next.

At this junction, the 18-year-old had to muster courage to keep her nerves calm and approach the match with composure. And she did it marvellously to first erase the deficit and in the decider, playing like a champion, she simply demolished her opponent.

--IANS

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