Cake-walk for Maharashtra ‘A’ women in National table tennis

Raipur, January 7, 2013:  Maharashtra ‘A’ women, last year’s champions, should walk into the final of the team championships, if one goes by the pre-quarterfinals draw decided at the of the National Table Tennis Championships after Stage 1 matches at the Balbir Singh Juneja Indoor Stadium here today. They beat both Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan in Group A with an identical 3-0 margin to take the top perch. 

Placed in the top-half, Maharashtra could well run into Delhi in the semifinals as the latter accounted for Maharashtra B, Punjab and Goa in a four-team Group G and they take on Assam in the pre-quarterfinals that begin tomorrow. In almost all second round matches, the results were along expected lines with the favourites making it a one-sided affair.

There could be another interesting match-up in offing in Stage 2 when Tamil Nadu women, in the bottom half of the draw, take on Andhra Pradesh in the last 16-stage. With three experienced girls in their ranks—A.V. Nivedita, N. Vidhya and Sumana R. Krishnan—Tamil Nadu have the ability to reach the semifinals where they could expect to meet North Bengal paddlers.  But before that they have to contend with Andhra Pradesh, who have Nikhat Banu and Karnam Spoorthy, in the pre-quarterfinals.

As for others, the fancied teams should pass the next round test without much sweat. But the real problem could be for the Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB). Unless the RSPB put their best foot forward, they could be out in the quarterfinals as they are likely to meet the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) women in the quarters. In any case, one of the two institutional teams would make way for a state team which, in turn, increase the latter’s chance of finishing among medals. 

As for Delhi, who are in top half, this championships present with a great opportunity to reach the final. With Manika Batra and Neha Aggarwal in their forefront and in good form, Delhi should at least reach the semi-finals where they will run into Maharashtra A, who have the likes of Divya Deshpande and Mamata Prabhu. If the former continue with the form they have shown so far, Delhi could topple Maharashtra A.

The teams that qualified for the pre-quarters also include Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, hosts Chattisgarh and Chandigarh.

In the men’s section, PSPB, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra ‘A’, Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Maharashtra ‘B’, RSPB, Orissa, North Bengal and Goa are the team set for a place in the second stage. The league phase will be completed only tomorrow and that will throw up the remaining five teams.

The Results (League):

Women:  Group A: Maharashtra A bt Rajasthan 3-0, Maharashtra A bt Andhra 3-0, Andhra bt Rajasthan 3-0; Group B: North Bengal bt Haryana 3-0, North Bengal bt Jharkhand 3-0, Haryana bt Jharkand 3-0;  Group C: PSPB bt Tripura 3-0, PSPB bt Himachal Pradesh 3-0, Himachal Pradesh bt Tripura 3-1; Group D: West Bengal bt Mizoram 3-0, Chattisgarh bt Uttarakhand 3-1, West Bengal bt Uttarakhand 3-0, Chattisgarh bt Mizoran 3-0, West Bengal bt Chattisgarh 3-0, Uttarakhand bt Mizoram 3-0;  Group E: Tamil Nadu bt Manipur 3-0, Madhya Pradesh bt Manipur 3-1, Tamil Nadu bt Madhya Pradesh 3-0; Group F: Gujarat bt Pondicherry 3-0, Chandigarh bt Pondicherry 3-1, Gujarat bt Chandigarh 3-0; Group G: Maharashtra B bt Goa 3-0, Delhi bt Punjab 3-0, Maharashtra B bt Punjab 3-0, Delhi bt Goa 3-0, Delhi bt Maharashtra B 3-0, Punjab bt Goa 3-2; Group H: RSPB bt Bihar 3-0, Assam bt Meghalaya 3-0, RSPB bt Meghalaya 3-0, Assam bt Bihar 3-0, RSPB bt Assam 3-0, Bihar bt Meghalaya 3-1.