Calcutta: At 34, Mouma Das is still going strong, with the medals she has won so far in the ongoing Commonwealth Games (CWG) being testament to it.

For sure, she is pleased with how she has been performing for the last year and half, but what makes her happier is the success of Manika Batra, who won the first-ever CWG gold in women’s table tennis on Saturday. 

“I am really very happy for Manika. Winning a singles gold is no mean feat, so what she has achieved is truly amazing,” Mouma said from Gold Coast. 

“This should serve as an inspiration for future paddlers of our country.”

India have already won four medals in table tennis in this edition of CWG and without doubt, this has been India’s best performance in the competition. With a little bit of luck, Mouma feels Manika and she could have clinched gold in women’s doubles as well.

“Of course, this, by far, has been our best showing (in CWG). I believe we could have finished on top in doubles as well.

“Manika and myself did pretty well till the final. But in that final, the Singaporean duo just surprised us by being too good.

Their performance really came as a surprise to us. In other words, we didn’t quite imagine they would be so good,” Mouma admitted.

Mouma and Manika lost 5-11, 4-11, 5-11 to Singaporeans Tianwei Feng and Yu Mengyu in the women’s doubles final.

Mouma, though, still has a chance to win her third medal in Gold Coast as she and Sharath Kamal get ready for Sunday’s mixed doubles bronze medal play-off match. “Obviously, I want to wrap things up with another medal. That would be the best way to finish,” she said.

The Asian Games in Jakarta is only four months from now, but what matters more for Mouma is an impressive performance in the World Team Table Tennis Championships, starting April 29 in Halmstad, Sweden.

“Honestly, I’m not thinking about the Asian Games at present. What’s more important for me now is the World Team event. 

“Doing well there will help us gain more points, so obviously that’s where my focus is on,” she stressed.

Asked about the Indian team’s prospects in that tournament, Mouma said: “Look, the squad hasn’t been finalised yet. Hopefully, Manika, Madhurika Patkar and myself will be there. Suthirtha (Mukherjee) too stands a chance of being selected.