Table Tennis: Loss makes Sharath determined

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Sharath Kamal is a household name in Indian table tennis. For the record, the Tamil Nadu paddler has won five of his six national titles in a row -the latest coming last year. But Sharath's reign came to an end on Sunday when he went down to his statemate A. Amalraj in the title bout at Lucknow.

The phones of both the players have not stopped ringing -for obvious reasons. While Amalraj is getting complimentary calls, the enquiry to Sharath is on his failure.

The runner-up is not ready to lose sleep over the loss. “This is a reality check. I was close to losing last year before I rallied to win the title. There was pressure on me because people think I should never lose at the national level. I am in a way happy to get the monkey off my back. This loss will make me more determined for the next nationals,“ said Sharath.

The Commonwealth gold medallist was overwhelmed by the support he has received. “After the match, I saw some of my supporters crying in the gallery. And one guy walked up to me and said ‘you are a champ and you will always be one’. This kind of support is a big motivation,” he said.

Sharath also heaped praise on his opponent. “Amalraj was excellent. After having beaten me at the inter-institute tournament, his confidence has skyrocketed. For me, the match was a psychological battle. I had been going through a bad patch for the last six months,” he added.

The Indian No. 1 wasn’t too pleased with Amalraj’s animated celebrations. “I am not too sure if it was the right way to celebrate your victory. Because you had another player there who had just lost the battle. Both of us do not hold any grudges against each other but an act like this will make people think otherwise,” Sharath said.