The Indian women's table tennis team are assured of a first-ever medal at the Asian Championships after they beat Paris Olympics bronze medallists South Korea in the quarterfinal. Ayhika Mukherjee defied her status as a rank underdog by beating Shub Yubin and Jeon Jihee, thus becoming the architect of India's win.

Ayhika, ranked 92nd in the world, beat World No.8 Shin Yubin and World No.16 Jeon Jihee. She and Manika Batra gave India an unexpected 2-0 lead in the tie before South Korea fought back to make it 2-2.

Ayhika and Manika Batra had given India an unexpected 2-0 lead before the South Koreans made it 2-2. Ayhika held her nerve against Jihee to seal the win in the deciding contest.

Ayhika defeated world number one Sun Yinghsa from China at the World Team Championships earlier this year. She was not part of the team that reached the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics. However, Archana Kamath's sudden retirement led to her making a comeback. On Tuesday, she put India ahead with an 11-9, 7-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-7 win over eighth-ranked Shin Yuben.

World number 29 Manika then made it 2-0 for India with a 12-14, 13-11, 11-5, 5-11, 12-10 win over 16th-ranked Jeon Jihee. India's highest-ranked player at 26, Sreeja Akula, allowed the Koreans to get back in the match after losing to Lee Eunhye in straight games -- 6-11, 10-12, 8-11.

Yubin then levelled the tie with a scrappy 13-11, 11-4, 6-11, 7-11, 12-10 win over Manika. In the all-important decider, Ayhika downed Jihee 7-11, 11-6, 12-10, 12-10 to get the job done. The Indian men's team will play its quarterfinal on Wednesday.

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