New Delhi, Feb 1 ( IANS) The recently concluded World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender Goa not only recorded historic Indian participation for a WTT event with country’s 43 paddler competing but also bolstered their qualification chances for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games as they racked up some valuable rankings points with performances.

The tournament also witnessed the global table tennis stars ascending at Mapusa’s Peddem Indoor Stadium with the French teenage sensation World No. 6 Felix Lebrun and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Cheng I-Ching lifting the men’s and women’s singles titles respectively.

The 25-year-old Hyderabad paddler Sreeja was the standout performer for India in the tournament as she concluded her campaign in the singles quarterfinals which saw her climbing up 38 spots to secure a career-best world rankings.

“WTT Star Contender Goa 2024 was a game-changer for me, it came at the right time and everything went well for me considering this is an Olympics year. I thank the organisers, my coach, physio and fans for their support. Playing in the home country is always a good feeling because we are used to playing in this environment and climatic conditions. It takes time to adapt to the conditions when you play in other countries. Thus, it was good for Indian players to play in India. This performance will also boost my confidence going forward,” Sreeja commented.

With the current world rankings of 36 and 51 respectively, Manika Batra and Sreeja have now strengthened their chances for the Paris Olympics qualification.

The prestigious tournament also witnessed five Indian pairs making it to the quarter-finals across categories which is a rarity in a WTT Star Contender event.

WTT Star Contender Goa is India’s biggest international table tennis tournament which is co-hosted by Stupa Sports Analytics and Ultimate Table Tennis under the guidance of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI).

“This year’s tournament was more important for our Indian players considering the upcoming Paris Olympics and I was delighted to see players like Sreeja Akula, Manika Batra taking advantage of the home support and collecting crucial ranking points,” said Deepak Malik, tournament director and COO and Co-Founder of Stupa Sports Analytics.

“It’s heartening to see Indians doing well at this tournament as we aim to provide them much-needed international platform and exposure through this event. As many as 18 Indian paddlers made WTT Star Contender debut which is a huge boost for Indian table tennis.

“With the participation of top international players and intense competition, it also gave Indians much-needed momentum ahead of the crucial World Team Table Tennis Championships. I wish them best luck,” Malik added.

Following WTT Star Contender Goa 2024, the focus now shifts to World Team Table Tennis Championships, scheduled from February 16 to 25, where Top-8 teams will confirm their places in the Paris Olympics.

Mapusa (Goa), Jan 26 (IANS) Young Indian paddler Archana Kamath pulled off a stunning victory over Portugal’s World No. 53 Jieni Shao to move into the women’s singles pre-quarterfinals in the ongoing World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender Goa 2024 at the Peddem Indoor Stadium here on Friday.

The 23-year-old from Bengaluru, who is currently ranked 134th in the world, had a slow start to the Round Of 32 match as she lost the first game against the higher-ranked and experienced opponent Shao. However, Kamath made a remarkable comeback, winning the next two games before clinching the match by 3-2 (9-11, 11-5, 11-5, 8-11, 11-5) to progress into the next round of the tournament.

“It was a very intense match, and my opponent was someone who didn’t leave the match until it was over. I am very happy that I won the match. She (Shao) used a lot of side spin and up spin during the match and was changing her positions as well which made the match a little tricky, but I am glad that I managed that and registered a win,” stated Kamath after winning the contest.

Meanwhile, the Indian pair of Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah exited the tournament after facing a 1-3 (7-11, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11) defeat against Kao Cheng-jui and Chuang Chih-yuan of Chinese Taipei in the quarterfinals of the men’s doubles category.

In the last-eight stage of the women’s doubles category, South Korea’s Shin Yubin and Eon Jihee beat Sayali Wani and Taneesha Kotecha 3-0 (11-2, 12-10, 11-2) whereas pair of Diya Chitale and Sreeja Akula also faced a 0-3 (9-11, 8-11, 8-11) defeat against Cheng I-Ching and Li Yu-Chun of Chinese Taipei.

Manush and Diya fought hard in their quarterfinal of the mixed doubles category before going down 2-3 (5-11, 11-6, 14-12, 8-11, 6-11) to the Spanish pair of Alvaro Robles and Maria Xiao.

The men’s singles category saw a comfortable victory of World No.8 France’s Felix Lebrun, who defeated Park Gyuhyeon of South Korea by 3-0 (11-6, 13-11, 18-16) to move into the pre-quarterfinals. England’s Liam Pitchford overcame the challenge of Wong Chun Ting by 3-2 (11-6, 8-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-8).

France’s Prithika Pavade registered a come-from-behind win by 3-2 (9-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-3) against Ryu Hanna in the round-of-32 of the women’s singles category, while World No. 8 Shin Yubin of South Korea defeated compatriot Choi Hyo-Joo 3-2 (11-5, 7-11, 12-10, 3-11, 11-4) in a thriller.

Mapusa (Goa), Jan 26 (IANS) WTT Star Contender Goa 2024 has been witnessing thrilling performances from top paddlers of the world. Chief Minister of Goa Pramod Sawant visited the Peddem Indoor Stadium in Mapusa and said that the “state will support more of such big tournaments in the future.”

“This is the second time that the World Table Tennis Star Contender has been organised in Goa. For the past few years, we have been organising big tournaments such as National Games and World Beach Volleyball (Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour 2023) in our state. Once again I am welcoming and congratulating the organisers for organising this type of tournament in the state of Goa,” commented Pramod Sawant, CM of Goa.

A star-studded line-up with top global players, including World No. 6 Hugo Calderano, last edition’s runner-up Cheng I-Ching (WR 18), and former World No. 1 Dimitrij Ovtcharov (WR 12), among others are competing for glory at the tournament with a $250,000 prize pool.

“Definitely, Goa is always promoting different types of sports. For the National Games, we have created the infrastructure required for such games. Along with the World Table Tennis [Star Contender Goa], we are also promoting other games such as football and volleyball. So we have the infrastructure ready to organise such a type of tournament in the state of Goa, whatever support is required from the government, will definitely be provided,” he added.

The chief minister also lauded the Fit India Movement envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said, “The Fit India movement which the Hon’ble Prime Minister has been promoting is a very important step towards improving the fitness level. The sport is always a must for everyone, every youngster should play at least one outdoor sport.”

Mapusa (Goa), Jan 25 (IANS) The young Indian duo of Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah sailed into the men’s doubles quarterfinals of the World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender Goa 2024 with a comfortable victory over Pang Yew En Koen and Avatar Quek Izaac of Indonesia at the Peddem Indoor Stadium on Thursday.

The Indian pair from Gujarat dominated their Indonesian opponents 11-7, 11-9, 11-5 in front of a cheering crowd in the round-of-16 match.

Meanwhile, paddlers from Maharashtra Taneesha Kotecha and Sayali Wani brought further cheer to the Indian camp by entering the last-eight stage in the women’s doubles event. They saw off a strong challenge from Christina Kallberg and Filippa Bergand of Sweden to notch up an 11-9, 4-11, 11-8, 11-7 victory.

The Indian girls will face Jeon Jihee and Shin Yubin of South Korea in the quarterfinals. The pair from South Korea had gotten the better of Barbora Balazova and Tatiana Kukulkova of Slovakia 11-9, 11-6, 11-3 in their opening-round clash.

In women’s singles, India’s Archana Kamath entered the Round of 32 by defeating Maria Xiao of Spain 11-7, 13-11, 12-10 in the opening round.

Sreeja Akula gave more reason to cheer to the Indian fans by defeating Camille Lutz of France 11-5, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8 in another first-round women’s singles contest. The Indian star will play Egypt’s Hana Goda in the second round.

In men’s singles, India’s Harmeet Desai crashed out in the first round itself as he went down 11-13, 11-9, 9-11, 11-8, 6-11 to Andrej Gacina of Croatia.

It was an exciting contest between two experienced contenders and kept the crowd at the edge of their seats with its plethora of hard-fought rallies and intense action.

In other results on the day, Jeet Chandra of India went down 5-11, 8-11, 4-11 to Alvaro Robles of Spain in the first round of the men’s singles event.

India’s Ajali Rohilla fought an uphill battle against Lee Eunhye of South Korea before losing 5-11, 10-12, 3-11 in the women’s singles game. Nithya Mani of India also lost to Thailand’s Orawan Paranang by a 15-13, 8-11, 2-11, 7-11 margin.