Asian Games 2023: India’s men’s table tennis team opened with a 3-0 win over Yemen. Straight set victories for Achanta Sharath Kamal, Harmeet Desai, and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran.
The Indian men’s table tennis team began their Asian Games 2023 campaign with a resounding victory over Yemen on Friday, September 22. In a dominant performance in Hangzhou, China, the Indian team defeated Yemen 3-0.
From the start, the Indian squad, which included Achanta Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, and Harmeet Desai, dominated. Sathiyan began the tournament with an 11-3, 11-2, 11-6 victory over Yemen’s Ali Omar Ahmed. Sharath Kamal, who has lately dropped out of the top 100 in the world rankings, defeated Yemen’s Ebrahim Abdulhakim Mohamm Gubran in just 17 minutes. Sharath Kamal won 11-3, 11-4, and 11-6.
Harmeet Desai, India’s current top-ranked player, was the last one to go and concluded his match in merciless fashion, winning 11-1, 11-1, 11-7 against Magd Ahmed Ali Aldhubhani.
This is the same Indian team that performed admirably at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham, England. The team won the gold medal there, marking India’s second consecutive triumph in the tournament.
INDIAN MEN TEAM START OF WITH A WIN
It was a easy going for the Men Team, as not much competition was expected from Yemen
We go again in the afternoon #AsianGames2023 pic.twitter.com/MpBdRLhVXM
— IndiaSportsHub (@IndiaSportsHub) September 22, 2023
The Indian squad faced off against Singapore in the final match, which India won 3-1. The team’s victory was not without its difficulties. Sharath Kamal, the national champion, was defeated in the second set of the tie, putting the team in jeopardy. However, the veteran players, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Harmeet Desai, rose to the occasion, winning their bouts and ensuring India’s gold medal.
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, the highest-ranked Indian player in the world, was instrumental in the team’s win. His performance against Singapore’s Pang Yew En Koen was especially notable, since he won despite a poor start. Likewise, Harmeet Desai’s performance against Zhe Yu Clarence Chew proved crucial to India’s triumph. Despite being ranked lower than his opponent, Desai outwitted Chew with crisp returns, assisting India in capturing back-to-back gold medals.
Sharath Kamal made waves in the same event by winning the singles gold medal in table tennis. This was his third Commonwealth championship of Birmingham 2022, cementing his place as one of India’s top table tennis players.
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