Upbeat Indian paddlers leave for World Championships

New Delhi, April 26 (IANS) Having undergone an intensive camp for a fortnight at the National Institute of Sports (NIS) in Patiala, a 10-member Indian table tennis contingent has left for the World Championships to be held in Tokyo from April 28 to May 5.

The men's team comprises A. Sharath Kamal, Anthony Amalraj, Soumyajit Ghosh, Harmeet Desai and national champion Sanil Shetty while K. Shamini, Madhurika Patkar, Manika Batra, Pooja Sahasrabudhe and national champion Ankita Das form the women's squad, accompanied by foreign coach Peter Engel and national coach Bhawani Mukherjee.

"Both teams had finished at 27 in the last Worlds (in 2012) in Germany. I am sure they will do better at Tokyo. I am really impressed with the way the boys, particularly Soumyajit Ghosh and Amalraj, have been preparing at the camp," said Engel.

"Harmeet and Sanil have been in great form. I want them to translate this form into winning matches. I have watched Sharath in recent times and believe me, he is in great shape."

As for the girls, Engel said there was great "team spirit" among them, adding that he had been working on their movements.

"Our training, apart from covering the technical and tactical aspects, also included several sessions on better movements. I see vast improvements and it will do them a world of good at the championships. Physical and mental fitness are the two aspects we put our emphasis on and they have yielded results," he said.

"You will see a different Shamini and a leaner Madhurika from now on. We have two first-timers too in Madhurika and Manika for the world meet. I am sure they will also do very well."

Coming to the draw, the men's team is in a far easier group than the women, who face a big hurdle in Turkey. The men are in Group F with Italy, Iran, Argentina, Australia and Paraguay while the women have Italy, Turkey, Nigeria, Portugal and Bulgaria in Group G.

The team that leads the standings at the end of the group stage will qualify for the quarter-finals and get byes into the draw of 16. Two other teams will play the pre-quarterfinals.

India men will open their campaign against Argentina while the women take on Nigeria Monday.