New Delhi, August 26: Ahead of the 2026 Asian Games, 17-year-old Syndrela Das has found a place in the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) Development Scheme, following some top-notch performances lately. The teenager hailing from Kolkata, bagged a silver in Girls’ Doubles and a Bronze in the Girls’ Singles at the Asian Youth Championships in Thailand earlier this year.
Her recent show has solidified her inclusion in the TOPS Development category. Syndrela had also bagged triple National Ranking age-group titles (U15, U17 and U19 singles) in 2023, before transitioning to the senior nationals in 2025.
Earlier this year, TOPS had decided to create a focused group of young talent between the age of 14 to 17, specifically for table tennis. Syndrela had been a part of that group – putting emphasis on building India’s bench strength for the 2030 Commonwealth Games and the 2036 Olympics.
Syndrela becomes a part of the scheme alongside fellow TT compatriots Payas Jain and Ankur Bhattacharjee, who play the men’s doubles.
India’s 10-member Asian Games 2026 squad includes Syndrela, Sreeja Akula, Diya Chitale, Yashaswini Ghorpade, Sutirtha Mukherjee, Sathiyan, Manush Shah, Manav Thakkar, Harmeet Desai and Payas.
Meanwhile, India’s top ranked Table Tennis athlete Manika Batra, has been approved for funding by the Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) for taking part in WTT Contender tournaments in Bulgaria and Kazakhstan, scheduled for this September.
