Old order changeth

Springing a surprise... Gnanashekhar Sathiyan and Shamini Kumaresan (below) won the singles titles.-R. RAGU Springing a surprise... Gnanashekhar Sathiyan and Shamini Kumaresan (below) won the singles titles.

The National ranking tournament threw up new champions as the fancied, senior players from Bengal took a beating. And one of the main reasons for the change of guard was the introduction of new glue (for pasting rubbers on the paddles) in place of the previously used volatile organic solvent, writes Amitabha Das Sharma.

A new chapter was opened in the annals of National ranking table tennis, as Bengal, which had dominated the national events for quite some time, was knocked off the pedestal. In the East Zone leg of the tournament in Bolpur, West Bengal, two new champions emerged in the main events, the men’s and women’s singles. Unseeded Gnanashekhar Sathiyan of Tamil Nadu sprang a big surprise by winning the men’s crown, while his state-mate, Shamini Kumaresan, bagged t he women’s title to complete the dominance of the southern powerhouse in the tournament. Sathiyan then went on to win a rare double, claiming the junior title too.

The new order, no doubt, was brought about by the introduction of a new type of glue for pasting rubbers on the paddles. With the worldwide ban on the previously used volatile organic solvent and the introduction of non-toxic water-based glue, the National ranking tournament was the first event in India where the players used the new substance.

Quite interestingly, the newly built SAI Special Area Games Centre, on the fringes of Shantiniketan — the renowned seat of learning that is synonymous with the Nobel laureate, Rabindranath Tagore — was the venue for the watershed event.

The Bengal players apparently were not comfortable with the new glue, while the players from Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra showed better adaptability. The new glue, while completely nullifying the advantage — that of speed — one gets by using the old glue, also forced ancillary changes, making the previously used rubber and the ply of the paddle almost redundant. Perhaps the best reaction to the change in glue came from the National champion and women’s top seed, Poulami Ghatak of Petroleum. “I am yet to find the right kind of rubber and ply that can suit my style as the new glue has neutralised the advantages we had with the old glue,” she said.

“I don’t mind losing even in the first round as it is more important for me to adjust to the new substance,” she added.

Poulami did not lose in the first round though, but she bowed out in the quarterfinals, losing to the new face of Indian table tennis, Neha Agarwal.

The seeded players began tumbling out from the first round itself in the women’s singles. It all started with Susmita Roy, seeded No. 6, who lost to qualifier Prajakta Tipale, a Maharashtra player representing the Railways. The institutional teams have been dominating the sport for quite some time now with good players from different states opting for jobs or long-term contracts with Petroleum, Railways or the Banks.

More seeds fell in the pre-quarterfinals with the No. 5 seed, Mantu Ghosh (Petroleum), a former national champion, and No. 4 seed, Anindita Chakraborty (Railways), bowing out to younger opponents, A. V. Nivedita (Tamil Nadu) and Pooja Sahasrabudhe (Maharashtra).

Poulami was the biggest casualty in the quarterfinals. Neha, high on confidence from her Olympic experience, avenged her defeat in the semifinal of the National Championship by vanquishing Poulami in a gruelling match, 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 11-3, 9-11, 10-12, 11-8.

Third seeded Shamini’s progress from the bottom half of the draw was remarkable. The trainee from the SDAT-GVK Academy in Chennai was in danger of losing in the pre-quarterfinals, trailing 0-3 against her Petroleum colleague Mousumi Paul. However, Shamini displayed steely resolve to win the next four games and march into the quarterfinals.

Shamini, who scalped second seeded Madhurika Patkar (4-2) in the semifinals, was in no mood to concede against the flamboyance of Neha in the final. The Chennai girl recovered from a slow start — she lost the first game — to dominate Neha, who lapsed into repeated errors before surrendering 4-1. The victory saw Shamini win her first title of the season.

What was really remarkable about Sathiyan was his confidence and versatility. The 15-year-old trainee from V. Chandrashekhar’s academy in Chennai was in superb form in the tournament and impressed with his ability to vary his game according to the situation. Coach S. Sridhar, who was travelling with the trainees of the academy, said Sathiyan showed the kind of self-belief that is hardly seen in the kids of his age.

Sathiyan, who came to the tournament after having won the Commonwealth Youth Games gold in Pune, started his men’s singles campaign by upsetting third seeded Raj Mondal of North Bengal in the pre-quarters.

Playing an attacking game with a wide array of strokes, Sathiyan beat sixth seeded Zubin Kumar in the quarters before making a short work of Railways’ Anirban Nandy in the semifinals. Anirban had outclassed former national champion and second seeded Subhajit Saha of Petroleum in the quarters.

While Sathiyan ruled the bottom half of the draw, another Tamil Nadu player, R. Abhishek, made a big impression in the top half, beating top seeded Sourav Chakraborty of Railways. Abhishek, who has a distinctively defensive style of play, also beat another fancied player, fourth seeded A. Amal Raj, in the pre-quarterfinals.

The final between Sathiyan and Abhishek was a clash of contrasting styles. Sathiyan played a waiting game and chose his shots well to demolish Abhishek’s defences.

In the junior boys final, Sathiyan beat state-mate V. Nitin in four games.

The youth boys title went to second seeded Aniket Koparkar of Maharashtra.

Bengal players, who generally dominate table tennis events, could win just two titles with the two North Bengal players, Ankita Das and Rajib Sarkar, claiming the junior girls and sub-junior boys crowns respectively.

THE RESULTS(Prefix denotes seeding)

Men’s singles final: G. Sathiyan (TN) bt R. Abhishek (TN/DB) 11-9, 10-12, 19-17, 11-5, 11-7. Semifinals: Abhishek bt 1-Sourav Chakraborty (RSPB) 11-8, 13-11, 11-9, 11-7; Sathiyan bt Anirban Nandy (RSPB) 11-5, 9-11, 11-7, 11-5, 8-11, 11-7.

Youth boys singles final: 2-Aniket Koparkar (Maharashtra) bt 4-Aman Balgu (Maharashtra) 8-11, 11-3, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 14-12. Semifinals: Aman bt 8-Soumyajit Ghosh (North Bengal) 11-8, 11-9, 12-10, 11-9; Aniket bt 3-Sanil Shetty (AI) 11-9, 9-11, 6-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-6.

Junior boys singles final: 3-G. Sathiyan bt 4-V. Nitin (PSPB-A) 11-7, 13-11, 11-2, 11-6. Semifinals: Nitin bt 8-Mohit Verma (PSPB-A) 11-6, 12-10, 11-8, 10-12, 11-8; Sathiyan bt 2-Raj Mondal (NB) 11-9, 11-6, 10-12, 11-9, 11-6.

Sub-junior boys singles final: 1-Rajib Sarkar (NB) bt 7-Sandipan Dey (West Bengal) 11-6, 4-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-4. Semifinals: Rajib bt Utkarsh Gupta (Delhi) 9-11, 12-14, 11-9, 11-6, 11-3, 11-6; Sandipan bt 3-Devdatta Phadnavees (Maharashtra) 11-6, 11-7, 11-7, 11-8.

Women’s singles final: 3-K. Shamini (PSPB) bt 8-Neha Agarwal (PSPB) 6-11, 11-4, 12-10, 11-6, 11-6. Semifinals: Neha bt A.V. Nivedita (TN) 11-8, 11-7, 5-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-8; Shamini bt Madhurika Patkar (PSPB) 12-10, 8-11, 11-6, 11-7, 8-11, 11-8.

Youth girls singles final: 4-Divya Deshpande (AI) bt 7-K. Shamini 11-6, 11-7, 2-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-5. Semifinals: Divya bt 1-Neha Agarwal 11-4, 12-10, 11-7, 7-11, 11-9; Shamini bt Prajakta Tipale (Maharashtra) 11-6, 12-10, 11-2, 11-6.

Junior girls singles final: 1-Ankita Das (NB) bt 7-Mallika Bhandarkar (Maharashtra) 11-9, 13-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9.

Semifinals: Ankita bt Camelia Sil (WB) 11-5, 8-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-4; Mallika bt Jayeeta Pushilal (WB) 11-1, 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8.

Sub-junior girls singles final: 1-Mallika Bhandarkar bt 3-Monika Batra (Delhi) 7-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-2, 11-8, 11-6. Semifinals: Mallika bt 5-Somali Sarkar (WB) 6-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-4, 8-11, 11-3; Monika bt Camilia Sil 11-8, 5-11, 11-3, 11-3, 10-12, 11-3.