They returned from Gold Coast with a bagful of medals. And followed it up with a creditable 13th and 17th-place finish for men and women respectively at the World Table Tennis Championship. Never have two Indian men featured in the top-30s in World rankings.
According to the National coach, the paddlers’ performances have forced the international table tennis fraternity to treat the Indian teams with respect.
And the franchise-based global league has given Indian table tennis a presence on television and on the world map like never before.
But if one feels these factors — especially the eight-medal haul at the Commonwealth Games, including an unprecedented three gold — would make India a medal-contender at the 18th edition of the Asian Games, one would be overestimating its chances. Though it is the best chance to return home with its first-ever medal from the quadrennial continental extravaganza, to refer to India as a medal contender would be far-fetched.
Depends on the draw
Of the five gold medals on offer at Jakarta, India has its best chances in the men’s and women’s team events. In a discipline that’s globally dominated by the Asian superpowers, no way will A. Sharath Kamal’s or Manika Batra’s teams be expected to repeat their Gold Coast performance.
But if the draw pits them against the fourth-placed team in both the events, India may hope to win a historic bronze. The table tennis competition will see both losing semifinalists winning bronze.
The men’s and women’s teams are seeded between fifth and eighth positions. China, Japan and Korea will be assured of being the top three teams from the group stages in both the events.
If the Indian teams are pitted against the fourth-seeded team in the quarterfinals, they can hope to stage an upset and win a medal.
In singles, despite Sharath, G. Sathiyan and Batra being at the prime of their form, a medal would be far from their minds at the start of the tournament.
After all, all three will start off seeded 9/16. It would mean they will have to be not just on top of their form but also upstage two top-eight paddlers each to get into medal contention. Considering the prowess and the consistency of the top paddlers, it would be an uphill task.
Training in super facility
It is heartening to see that the Indian contingent will enter the Asian Games on the back of some ideal preparation.
After featuring together in the prestigious Inter-institutional tournament in Coimbatore last week, the whole squad under the watchful eyes of head coach Massimo Costantini have been training at the Sichuan Sports Technic in Chengdu, China.
Besides training at a facility that’s considered to be among the best in the world, the fact that they have been practising with the Chinese second teams will also hold the Indian paddlers in good stead by the time they arrive in Jakarta.
