Date:11/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/11/stories/2009011155801500.htm

Sport - Table Tennis

It’s Pathik’s day all the way

Amitabha Das Sharma

PATNA: Gujarat’s Pathik Mehta and Maharashtra lass Divya Deshpande emerged the key performers in the 70th senior National table tennis championships here on Saturday.

Unseeded Pathik, ranked 32nd, showed great character and endurance while winning all his three matches on the day. His best came in the quarterfinals where he salvaged two match points before turning the tables on India No. 1 Subhajit Saha.

Unseeded Divya performed exceptionally well to show the defending champion and fourth seed Poulami Ghatak the door.

Neha crashes out

Second seeded Neha Aggarwal was taken out in the pre-quarterfinals by another Maharashtra player, Ashlesha Bodas, 4-1. Four-time National champion Mouma Das made a comeback by beating third seeded Madhurika Patkar in another big upset in the quarterfinals.

Pathik, who plays in the Spanish first division, removed 13th ranked Subham Chowdhury in the second round. He then consumed sixth ranked and seventh seeded Devesh Karia in the pre-quarterfinals before plucking out Subhajit.

The results: Men’s Singles: Quarterfinals: A. Sharath Kamal (PSPB) bt Aniket Koparkar (Mah ‘A’) 11-5, 9-11, 11-4, 11-5, 11-6; Sourav Chakraborty (RSPB) bt Jignesh Jaiswal (Guj) 11-7, 5-11, 5-11, 11-9, 13-11, 11-5; A. Amal Raj (PSPB) bt Saugata Sarkar (WB) 11-9, 11-3, 11-7, 11-4; Pathik Mehta (Guj) bt Subhajit Saha (PSPB) 10-12, 10-12, 11-6, 11-8, 8-11, 13-11, 11-9.

Pre-quarterfinals: Sharath Kamal bt Harmeet Desai (Guj) 6-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-8; A. Koparkar bt R. Abhishek (TN) 11-6, 9-11, 11-3, 12-10, 11-8; J. Jaiswal bt Zubin Kumar (PSPB) 11-5, 9-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-7, 5-11, 11-8; S. Chakraborty bt Raj Mondal 11-3, 7-11, 11-2, 9-11, 11-1, 12-10; A. Raj bt Sanil Shetty (Mah ‘A’) 11-5, 7-11, 8-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-7, 12-10; S. Sarkar bt Anirban Nandi (RSPB) 11-9, 5-11, 7-11, 11-5, 13-11, 11-9; P. Mehta bt 7-Devesh Karia (PSPB) 11-6, 11-4, 11-3, 12-10; S. Saha bt Rohit Chaudhary (Mah-B) 11-4, 11-7, 11-9, 11-4.

Second round (important results): A. Koparkar bt S. Raman (PSPB) 9-11, 12-10, 16-14, 11-9, 11-5; J. Jaiswal bt 5-G. Sathiyan (TN) 5-11, 9-11, 14-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7; S. Sarkar bt Aman Balgu (Mah ‘A’) 11-9, 13-11, 8-11, 9-11, 11-6, 7-11, 11-9; P. Mehta (Guj) bt Subham Choudhary (WB) 11-6, 11-3, 8-11, 10-12, 12-10, 12-14, 11-8.

Women’s singles: Quarterfinals: K. Shamini (PSPB) bt Prajakta Tipale (Mah ‘B’) 11-4, 11-7, 12-10, 12-10; Divya Deshpande (Mah ‘A’) bt Poulomi Ghatak (PSPB) 11-9, 11-8, 12-10, 9-11, 11-6; Mouma Das (WB) bt Madhurika Patkar (PSPB) 7-11, 12-10, 5-11, 11-5, 12-10, 11-8; Pooja Sahastrabudhe (Mah ‘A’) bt Ashlesha Bodas (Mah ‘A’) 11-6, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 11-4.

Pre-quarterfinals: Shamini bt A.V. Niveditha (TN)11-8, 11-8, 16-14, 11-4; P. Tipale bt Mantu Ghosh (NB) 11-8, 11-13, 14-12, 11-8, 10-12, 11-5; D. Deshpande bt Mousumi Paul (WB) 11-2, 11-8, 13-15, 3-11, 11-6, 14-12; P. Ghatak bt Mamta Prabhu (DB) 11-9, 10-12, 11-8, 9-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7; M. Patkar bt Kasturi Chakraborty (NB) 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-6, 11-8; M. Das bt Ankita Das (NB) 7-11, 11-1, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11, 6-11, 11-6; P. Sahastrabudhe bt Soumi Mondal (WB) 11-9, 8-11, 11-2, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6; A. Bodas bt Neha Aggarwal (PSPB) 6-11, 11-4, 12-10, 11-9, 11-8.