The word miracle is often overused in sporting contexts. However, in this context, Sutirtha Mukherjee and Ayhika Mukherjee needed something more than just a mere miracle.
This wasn't just David v Goliath. Exaggerate that idiom to absurd proportions, and you have what stood in front of the two Indians on that day in Hangzhou. In 13 editions of women's doubles at the Asian Games, eight gold medals had gone to Chinese pairs.
Chen Meng, world no.2. Wang Yidi, world no.4. Straight from that honour roll that produced those eight previous gold-medal winning pairs. A raucous crowd backing them. Not one of those at the arena that day even contemplated the Indians putting up a contest. This was supposed to be a formality, as it often is when the Chinese play table tennis. As it almost always is when the Chinese play table tennis in China.
17 minutes of action later, a shell-shocked Hangzhou crowd watched on as the formality became adversity for the local favourites. The Indians had taken the first game 11-5, and then the second game by the same scoreline. Sutirtha was powering her forehands. Ayhika kept her end of the bargain, controlling things, not making mistakes, being the steady base from which her partner could unleash her power.
In a way, the Indians had won in those 17 minutes. They created jitters in the crowd, and in their opponents. Doubt had set in. Maybe, just maybe, Chen and Wang don't have enough to get past the Indians.
That was another indication of the task which the Indians were up against. They'd given their opponents only ten points in two games combined. Yet, it was still just a maybe.
But here's the thing about being as dominant as the Chinese, you're not sure how to react to adversity, because when was the last time you were in it?
And the Indian pair piled on. There was no pressure on them, so they decided they would just go out and enjoy themselves. Sutirtha and Ayhika went about their business as if they were practicing back home in Kolkata. They were having fun, they kept talking to each other, they were having a laugh. On this mega stage, they were showing their mega selves.
But how can you celebrate too early before getting the job done, when the Chinese are around? The roars from the crowd began to come with more regularity in the third game. Two games later than it should've, but now they were in the groove.
You've had your fun and games, Mukherjees. Great prank. Now let us show you how to close this out.
Nine minutes. 11-5. The Chinese were back in it. Only a game down, now.
Now here's when lesser mortals crumble. It's a whole nation against two people. Those two, though, wanted to carry their prank through.
And so, they came out in the fourth game playing as if they didn't want to have any regrets. Ayhika found glorious angles, Sutirtha found frightening power. They just kept putting the ball back on the table. Chen and Wang don't make errors too often, and there was nothing "unforced" about the errors they were making here. The Indians were playing a strategy that had its potential pitfalls, but embracing that risk is what had brought them here in the first place.
They wouldn't be three points away from victory if they didn't show the all-out aggression they did. So, at 8-5, three points away from utopia, when the Indian coach told Sutirtha and Ayhika, "bindaas khelo," it felt like it was merely to reiterate what had got them so far. With the finish line in sight, this was a message to not worry about the pitfalls of that strategy.
8-5 became 10-9, they were a point away from victory, but they could sense their champion opponents behind them. Imagine if they'd given up match points. What might that have done to their mentality? What might the deafening roars from the crowd have done? Would they ever have a better chance than that?
Thankfully for Sutirtha Mukherjee and Ayhika Mukherjee, those are all just hypothetical questions now. When Chen hit a forehand long, they jumped up in joy, broke into massive smiles, and then hugged their coach, who still seemed to be in some disbelief. It eventually ended in bronze as they lost their semifinal, but that quarterfinal was no less than a final. Beating a Chinese pair in table tennis in China. It's what dreams are made of.
For living out that dream, Sutirtha and Ayhika's win is ESPN India's Match of the Year 2023.