Sreeja Akula Explained

Sreeja Akula (born 31 July 1998) is an Indian table tennis player. She is a two-time Indian national champion. She is currently ranked India number one in women's singles.^[4] Akula received the Arjuna Award in 2022.

At the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Akula won the gold medal in the mixed doubles event with Sharath Kamal. In June 2024, she became the first Indian to win a singles title at the WTT Contender level by clinching the top spot at WTT Contender Lagos.

She also became the second ever Indian paddler to reach the Pre-Quarterfinals in the Olympics at the Paris Olympics 2024.^[5]

Early life and education

Sreeja hails from Hyderabad. Both her father Praveen Kumar, a manager in a private insurance company, and elder sister Ravali are table tennis players.^[6] Ravali played at the university level. Sreeja trained under coach Somnath Ghosh,^[7] at his academy at Kukatpally, Hyderabad. Before that she learnt the basics at St Paul’s Academy in Basheer Bagh when she was nine years and continued the game at YMCA in Narayanguda, She passed her intermediate (plus two) with 98.7 percent and then graduated in commerce. Telangana State Table Tennis Association (TSTTA) Secretary Nagendra Reddy was one of her first coaches.

Career

Akula was the gold medalist in Women's Doubles and Women's Team events in Table tennis at the 2019 South Asian Games.^[8]

Akula won the women's singles and doubles table tennis titles at the 83rd Senior National and Inter-State Table Tennis Championships held in April 2022.^[9] She was the runner-up in national Women's singles in the previous edition, losing to Manika Batra. She was also a part of the Indian team at the 2022 Commonwealth Games where she won gold medal in mixed doubles event with Sharath Kamal.^[10]

In January 2024, Sreeja won her maiden WTT singles career title at the WTT Feeder Corpus Christi in Texas. This was followed by her second singles career title at the WTT Feeder Beirut II in March 2024 where she beat Luxembourg’s Sarah De Nutte 3-1 (6-11, 12-10, 11-5, 11-9) in the final.^[11] At the WTT Contender Lagos in June 2024, Akula became the first Indian to win a title at the Contender level. She achieved this feat by beating China's Ding Yijie with a 4-1 score in the ultimate clash. At the same event, she also won the women's doubles title alongside Archana Kamath.^[12]

Awards

Akula received the Arjuna Award in 2022.^{[13] [14]}

Notes and References

1. Web site: Akula Sreeja, the new queen of Indian table tennis. Telangana Today. Krishan Gundra. Shiva. 25 April 2022. 25 April 2022. 25 April 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220425211153/https://telanganatoday.com/akula-sreeja-the-new-queen-of-indian-table-tennis. live.
2. Web site: ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking Women's Singles 2024 Week #32 - August 06. ITTF. https://web.archive.org/web/20240807101932/https://www.ittf.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/2024_32_SEN_WS.html . 6 August 2024. 7 August 2024. live.
3. Web site: ITTF Table Tennis World Ranking Women's Singles 2024 Week #32 - August 6. ITTF. https://web.archive.org/web/20240807101932/https://www.ittf.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/2024_32_SEN_WS.html . 6 August 2024. 7 August 2024. live.
4. Web site: Subrahmanyam . V. V. . 2024-01-02 . Sreeja shifts focus to Paris Olympics after ranking first in women's singles for the fourth consecutive year . 2024-03-05 . Sportstar . en . 5 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240305050221/https://sportstar.thehindu.com/table-tennis/sreeja-akula-paris-2024-olympics-womens-singles-ttfi-ranking-fourth-consecutive-year/article67698301.ece . live .
5. Web site: Paris Olympics: Birthday girl Sreeja Akula follows Manika into pre-quarters .
6. Web site: Tomar . Ajay . 2024-02-18 . Telangana paddler Sreeja Akula has her eyes set on Paris Olympics after beating World No 2 . 2024-03-05 . The South First . en . 5 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240305050221/https://thesouthfirst.com/telangana/telangana-paddler-sreeja-akula-has-her-eyes-set-on-paris-olympics-after-beating-world-no-2/ . live .
7. Web site: Subrahmanyam . V. V. . 2024-01-02 . Sreeja shifts focus to Paris Olympics after ranking first in women's singles for the fourth consecutive year . 2024-03-05 . Sportstar . en . 28 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240728120805/https://sportstar.thehindu.com/olympics/paris-2024/interviews/sreeja-akula-paris-2024-olympics-womens-singles-ttfi-ranking-fourth-consecutive-year/article67698301.ece . live .
8. Web site: Today . Telangana . 2022-04-25 . Akula Sreeja, the new queen of Indian table tennis . 2022-07-29 . Telangana Today . en-US . 29 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220729221437/https://telanganatoday.com/akula-sreeja-the-new-queen-of-indian-table-tennis . live .
9. Web site: Senior TT Championships: Sharath Kamal wins 10th national title, Sreeja Akula her first . 25 April 2022 . 27 July 2022 . 28 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240728120803/https://thebridge.in/table-tennis/sharath-kamal-10th-national-title-sreeja-akula-1st-30965?infinitescroll=1 . live .
10. Web site: 2024-01-23 . Mental strength, variations and forearm conditioning on national TT champion Sreeja Akula's mind as she aims for Olympic qualification . 2024-03-05 . The Indian Express . en . 5 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240305050221/https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/sport-others/mental-strength-variations-and-forearm-conditioning-on-national-tt-champion-sreeja-akulas-mind-as-she-aims-for-olympic-qualification-9124577/ . live .
11. Web site: Nag . Utathya . 24 March 2024 . WTT Feeder Beirut II 2024: Sreeja Akula wins singles title . 24 June 2024 . . 28 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240728121303/https://olympics.com/en/news/wtt-feeder-beirut-ii-2024-table-tennis-india-results-winners . live .
12. Web site: 2024-06-23 . Table Tennis: Sreeja Akula does the double: Wins singles and doubles WTT titles in Lagos . 2024-06-24 . The Indian Express . en . 24 June 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240624044522/https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/sport-others/sreeja-akula-singles-doubles-win-wtt-contender-titles-9410607/ . live .
13. Web site: Today . Telangana . 2022-11-16 . Arjuna Award a big motivation, says Hyderabad paddler Sreeja . 2024-03-06 . Telangana Today . en . 30 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231130203551/https://telanganatoday.com/arjuna-award-a-big-motivation-says-hyderabad-paddler-sreeja . live .
14. News: 2022-11-30 . Birmingham CWG star Sreeja Akula excited to be honoured with Arjuna award . 2024-03-06 . The Times of India . 0971-8257 . 28 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240728121304/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/others/birmingham-cwg-star-sreeja-akula-excited-to-be-honoured-with-arjuna-award/articleshow/95875894.cms . live .