Not very often does one see a champion performer having roots in an Academy like Global Table Tennis Academy which has just three tables. But, close on the heels of Akula Sreeja’s silver in women’s section, till recently a product of the same Academy under coach Somnath Ghosh, Fidel R. Snehit did exactly that in the junior boys singles in the recent Central Zone national-ranking table tennis tournament held in Indore.
A sure sign that the India No. 6 in juniors is on the right track, thanks to his training stint now under the highly respected former national champion S. Raman at his High Power Table Tennis Academy in Chennai where the emphasis has been on speed and technique.
National team
By virtue of this silver in the first national ranking tournament of the new season, which 17-year-old Snehit says is one of the biggest achievements (the other being the bronze in the Junior National last year which also happened to be a first by a Hyderabadi in men’s section at the national level in 25 years), the young Hyderabadi is now selected to represent India in the international tournament in Jordan next month.
“Frankly, it was disappointing to lose in the final but at the same time I can take pride from the fact that I lost to the top-seed Manav Thakkar after beating some bigger names in previous rounds. There are a lots of positives from this performance which I would love to carry forward and achieve bigger things this year,” says Snehit.
‘Good coach’
“I moved to Chennai to get an advanced coaching from Raman Sir who really helped me to plug some weak points, in believing myself and also learn the science behind the game,” says the young paddler, who had already won half a dozen international medals in cadet and sub junior categories.
“We are grateful to Raman Sir and his wife Bhuvana for not being money-minded and taking care of the trainees in the residential academy so well,” says Snehit’s father Ramu.
With my principal Rama Devi madam and teachers extending complete support to pursue my table tennis career, I wish to realise my first big target now to become the national champion, signs off the student of Class XII in Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Jubilee Hills here.
