Sharath Kamal happy that India found a new star in Manika Batra

22-year-old table tennis star Manika Batra has become a household name after returning from CWG with medals in all the four events that she took part in. She won the gold medal in women’s singles and the team event, clinched the silver in the women’s doubles event and bagged the bronze in the mixed doubles competition.

India have certainly found a new star in the Delhi star, who looked prepared to shoulder the responsibility of Indian table tennis for the years to come. Sharath Kamal, who has been one of India’s leading table tennis players for a long time now and has lifted the burden for more than a decade now, looked pleased with the way Batra has performed and admitted that he would be happy to pass on the baton of responsibility to the new star. 

“I couldn't be happier for her (Manika). I told her on the final day that now the responsibility is on you to take the sport forward. I have done my bit in the last 10 years. Beating World No 4 Feng Tianwei (triple Olympic medallist) twice was no mean feat. The Singaporean is still one of the best in the world. The good thing is that Manika always wants to improve and I hope she goes on to do bigger things,” aid Sharath Kamal, quoted TOI. 

Prior to winning three medals at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Kamal had been contemplating retirement for some time and wanted to take a call after his fifth Olympics in Tokyo, 2020. However, his performance (where he won gold in the team event, silver in the doubles, bronze in the singles competition) this year has given him confidence. 

“A lot of international coaches and players I met in Gold Coast told me that I am playing well and can easily go on till the 2022 CWG in Birmingham. I too feel that I am playing well and to be honest I have started thinking about 2022,” he said.

It was a record Commonwealth Games for the Indian paddlers as they bagged eight medals including three gold, two silver and three bronze medals. But Kamal has been of the opinion that India need to build on this success and win more medals in bigger events. 

“We will have to keep producing results. That is the only way forward. Otherwise, all the hype we have created with our effort in Gold Coast has to die down. Performing in Commonwealth Games is good but at the end of the day, we need to aim for medals in Asian Games, World Championships and Olympics. I can't say about our singles chances but we the men's team is capable of winning a World Championship medal over the next couple of years,” the 35-year-old added.