Manav bags bronze at Panchkula

Gandhidham, Feb.25, Surat-based Manav Thakkar added one more national medal in ever growing kitty when the bespectacled paddler bagged bronze at the UTT 82nd National Table Tennis Championships 2020. Manav, who represents Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB), had a silver medal last year.
Gujarat players had a forgettable outing with top player Manush Shah managing pre-quarterfinal finish.
In pre-quarters Manav accounted for Nitin Thiruvengadam of Tamil Nadu 11-9, 8-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-5 before showing Bengal’s Ronit Bhanja the door with an superb 11-7, 12-10, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6 win.
The Semi-final saw Manav pitted against seasoned and Olympian A Sharath Kamal. Refusing to give up easily, Manav matched Kamal’s strategy and energy, especially attacking way of play, during the high-voltage semifinal. On a few occasions, the second game in particular, Manav’s backhand and wonderful placements caught Sharath on the wrong foot. Unfortunately for Manav, Sharath rode on his experience and stayed in the match. The semifinal which was a learning experience for Manav, saw the young paddler going down 8-11 11-5 12-14 9-11 11-9 15-17.
Another Surti, Harmeet Desai, last year’s champion also represented PSPB. Harmeet went down to SFR Snehit 9-11 7-11 9-11 5-11. From Gujarat’s point of view, Manush had the highest finish. He bowed out to ultimate winner G Sathiyan in the pre-quarters. The left-handed paddler from Vadodara, Manush showed a lot of determination snatching a game but it was Sathiyan who had the last laugh. G. Sathiyan won 11-8, 12-14, 11-9, 11-8, 13-11.
“We (GSTTA) are very happy for Manav. He is a special talent. He plays for PSPB but he learnt his basics when he was with the Gujarat team and we are proud of his achievements. We wish he wins many more national and international medals in future,” said Vipul Mittra, IAS, president of Gujarat State Table Tennis Association.
Echoing similar sentiments, GSTTA secretary Haresh Sangtani said Manav has been playing at an incredibly high level over the last year and half. “Manav has the momentum on his side and therefore deserves to be number one. He lost against an experienced player like Sharath. I am sure Manav must have learnt a lot from that defeat,” said Sangtani.
Meanwhile, Gujarat Cadet Girls and Sub Junior Girls left for Indore to participate in the UTT 82nd Cadet and Sub-Junior National Table Tennis Championships-2020. The Championships is scheduled from 25th February to 1st March 2021.
Interestingly, the cadet state team comprises all Ahmedabad players. Pratha Pawar won the final against Hiya Singh while Jiya Trivedi and Mouboni Chatterjee had finished as semifinalists in the State Championships 2020 held at Gandhidham last month.
Khushi Jadav of Bhavnagar will lead the sub-junior girls charge that also has Mouboni, Aastha Mistry of Navsari and Arnee Parmar of Surat.
Girls: Cadet: Pratha Pawar, Hiya Singh, Jiya Trivedi, Mouboni Chatterjee (all Ahmedabad)
Sub Junior: Khushi Jadav (Bvn), Mouboni Chatterjee (Ahm), Aastha Mistry (Nav), Arnee Parmar (Srt)
Coach-Cum-Manager: Laveena Bhargava (SAG)
Manav’s results
PQF: bt Nitin Thiruvengadam (TNTTA) 11-9, 8-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-5
QF: bt Ronit Bhanja (Ben) 11-7, 12-10, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6,
SF: lost to A. Sharath Kamal bt Manav Thakkar (PSPB) 8-11 11-5 12-14 9-11 11-9 15-17.