Vishwa was "loved by everyone", recollects players and coaches after accidental death

D. Vishwa passed away in a road accident while travelling by road from Guwahati to Shillong for the Senior National table tennis Championships.

Coach of Vishwa for 12 years, R. Ramnath Prasad [and Jai Prabhu Ram] said Vishwa (second from right) had two different personalities - "On it (the table) he was very aggressive and off it very humble. He was loved by everyone.”

There were a whole lot of Tamizhaga Table Tennis Association (TTTA) paddlers in three separate cars travelling on Sunday for the Senior Nationals and Inter-State table tennis championships here on the fateful day when D. Vishwa, one of the State’s promising young table tennis players, died in a road accident.

M. Nithyashree, TTTA women paddler recollected: “The entire TTTA (men  & women) team left Guwahati airport on Sunday at around 12.30-1245 p.m. in three different cars. When our car reached the spot [Umily check point] we saw our coach Jai Prabhu Ram and a few locals rescuing our paddlers from the accident spot. There were no injury signs on Vishwa."

"We shouted, screamed his name and hoped that he would open his eyes, but there was no response. Then a medical student or doctor even tried CPR. Then he was taken in an ambulance soon.”

Even after TTTA’s first round win against Goa in the team event of the Senior Nationals, Nithyashree’s eyes seemed moist. “I am not able to get over it. VIshwa’s face is still in my mind,” she said.

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TTTA paddler Selena Deepthi, who is a good friend of Vishwa, was equally devastated.

“He is my mixed doubles partner. We trained together in the camp and were eager to do better here as we had reached the pre-quarters in the 2019 Hyderabad Nationals.

He is a bit reserved but would share a lot of things if you become his friend. He would come up to me during practice and tell ‘akka this stroke is wrong. We have some very good memories travelling together in many domestic tournaments and few International ones,” she said.

Ramesh Babu, TTTA coach, who looked after the formalities at the hospital was shocked beyond words.

“I was his coach in his first International assignment–the Hopes International–in Qatar and I was here on his last day signing forms at the hospital. This is unimaginable grief,” he said.

Ramesh said that the three other paddlers–R. Santosh Kumar, D. Kishore Kumar, S. Abhinash Prasannaji–who travelled with Vishwa have no major injury concerns but would take no further part in the Senior Nationals and will return to their respective homes soon with their guardians.

Coach of Vishwa for 12 years, R. Ramnath Prasad [and Jai Prabhu Ram] said Vishwa had two different personalities: one on the table and the other off the table."On it he was very aggressive and off it very humble. He was loved by everyone,” he said.

Ramanath said that he was being mentored by India’s top paddler Sharath Kamal for two years and that they were expecting Vishwa to create a few upsets in Shillong and do much better later. Ramnath said Vishwa's body will be taken to the New Avadi Crematorium (Chennai) on Tuesday at 10.30 a.m.