You can gauge the success of table tennis in India by the team rankings. The Indian contingent broke into the top 10, ranked ninth, earlier this month. And now, all eyes will be on star paddler Sathiyan Gnanasekaran as he gears up for the Men’s World Cup — organised by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) — starting on Friday.
The tournament will be held in Chengdu, China.
Ace Chinese paddlers Ma Long and Fan Zhendong, European stalwarts Timo Boll and Simon Gauzi are among the top paddlers in the pool.
READ| Table Tennis Men's World Cup: Sathiyan ready for showtime
The winner of the tournament will earn $60,000, while the runner-up will take home $40,000. The oldest competitor is 43-year-old Vladimir Samsonov (Belarus). The youngest is Tomokazu Harimoto (Japan) who is 16.
When: November 29 to December 1
Where: Olympic Square, Sichuan Provincial Gymnasium in Chengdu, China
Time: Matches on November 29 and 30 will begin at 7:30 am. Matches on December 1 will begin at 8:00 am (Indian Standard Time)
Watch: Star Sports Select 2 and Star Sports Select 2 HD
Live Streaming: Hotstar and on the official ITTF website at https://tv.ittf.com/
