PSPB men, women extend hold over team trophies

New Delhi, August 19, 2014: It is the Petroleum Sports Control Board (PSPB) that emerged victorious yet again. Both their men’s and women’s teams extended their reign over the two trophies for the nth time, without any threats—not even a perceived one—beating the Railways men and the Airports Authority of India women by an identical 3-0 margin in the AAI 44th Inter-Institutional Table Tennis Championships being played here at the Tyagraj Stadium.

The verdicts, along the expected lines, must have given real headaches to some of the teams in fray, for they may be sick and tired of going over the exercise of competing in the championships year after year, all in futility, and not seeing the silverwares coming their way even once.

For most teams, the team trophies have remained a pipedream and yet they religiously participate in the event. They need to put on the thinking caps and work their way out of a difficult situation to revive whatever little interests left in the championships.

The Soumyajit Ghosh-Sanil Shetty-Harmeet Desai blend did not need a second invitation to rout the Railway Sports Promotion Board as it went about its task clinically, demolishing one opponent after another to complete the job. Ghosh, unleashing a combination attack on both flanks, took 18 minutes flat to outwit Anirban Nandi, the most experienced Railways’ player, 11-6, 11-8, 11-9. Shetty, the national champion, conceded his second, hard-fought game to Souvik Kar, but came to grips soon after with his blistering forehand to outwit Souvik. And Desai, consumed very little time at the table to run over Noel Pinto for the 11-8, 11-3, 11-9 verdict.

PSPB team’s coach S.Ramaswamy was happy the way his team performed professionally. “I was a bit surprised that no opposition came from the Railways. But we were sure of retaining the trophy,” he said. On the other hand, RSPB coach Bona Thomas was more opt when he said that they had expected the team to reach final. “We know we will have a tough time against PSPB in the final. Our boys need to work more on fitness,” he said.

That, in a nutshell, summed up the chasm between PSPB teams and the rest.

So, it was not surprising that their women also played exactly the way a top-notch outfit would do. Barring the first game in which AAI’s Nikhat Bhanu began briskly and taking it 11-3, it was PSPB’s Madhurika Patkar all the way, stopping Bhanu on her tracks.

Ankita Das, too, lost a game to the promising Kritwikka Sinha Roy but the former proved to be way ahead with bagful of tricks—she played to her strength to win 11-8, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7. Former national champion Poulomi Ghatak, despite being rusty and losing her first extended game at 12-14, managed to put it across Amrutha Pushpak.

In the last edition at Dharwad, they had bagged two titles—the Youth Boys and Youth Girls—but as hosts they had nothing this time around. This must be really hurting them. Nevertheless, AAI can take heart from the fact that the three girls in the team final had managed to take a game each off their better known opponents.

Dignitaries from AAI and TTFI gave away the medals to the winners.

Results (team finals):

Men: Petroleum Sports Promotion Board bt Railway Sports Promotion Board 3-0 (Soumyajit Ghosh bt Anirban Nandi 11-6, 11-8, 119, Sanil Shetty bt Souvik Kar 11-4, 12-14, 11-8, 11-7, Harmeet Desai bt Noel Pinto 11-8, 11-3, 119).

Women: Petroleum Sports Promotion Board bt Airports Authority of India 3-0 (Madhurika Patkar bt Nikhat Bhanu 3-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8, Ankita Das bt Kritwikka Sinha Roy 11-8, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7, Poulomi Ghatak bt Amrutha Pushpak 12-14, 11-3, 13-11, 11-8.