Two CWG singles golds an out-of-this-world sensation 16 years apart; future of the Indian TT in the right hands, says Sharath Kamal | Commonwealth Games 2022 news

NEW DELHI: Before flying to Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games (CWG), Sharath Kamal he had categorically mentioned “I’m doing my best table tennis at 40. “By the time she got home two weeks later, Sharath had turned those words into three astonishing gold and one silver medals, and the loot included the coveted triumph in the men’s singles – a feat she achieved amazingly. for the last time in his CWG debut, back in 2006.
Sharath spoke recently TimesofIndia.com on this and more.
Becoming the most successful athlete in the country at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in what was her fifth appearance at the Games is an achievement based solely on resilience and process. And the fact that his younger teammates accompanied him to the podium – for the men’s team gold, men’s doubles silver (with Sathiyan Gnanasekaran) and the gold mixed doubles (with Sreeja Akula), says a lot about how Sharath not only upped his game, but also played a key role in helping others grow with him.
The way he continues to do it year after year, as he continually raises the bar, is something Sharath himself can answer better, and he’s done it in a way as accurate as his forehand in this interview with TimesofIndia.com.
Two CWG singles gold medals 16 years apart, not many make it …
It is truly an out of this world feeling. Doing it 16 years later is a huge task. But if you look at my chart, I’ve always been there. That’s not how the other times I lost in the first round or the second round. Obviously, I’ve played the (CWG singles) final again (after 16 years), and haven’t had a single final lately, but I’ve been there.
This time, I wasn’t sure if I was going to win a gold medal; but there was a chance I could do that because the players above me are the ones I had beaten (in the past), so I had a good chance against them. But at the same time, (I knew) it will be the performance of that day that will decide who will be the winner.

Sharath Kamal (photo AP)
India defended the men’s team gold medal, but you didn’t have a good start to the season personally, having lost the match in the final against Singapore. Did it shock you?
No, not really. At the end of the day, it’s the team match and the team has to win. It does not matter. It’s about building the team. The victory in the semifinals is also important. It gave me a lot of confidence to have beaten the seed of Nigeria (Aruna Quadri). I knew I was on the right track. That match (defeat in the final) was a one-off. It can happen, but it didn’t bother me.

Winning gold in mixed doubles with Sreeja Akula must have been just as special …
Sreeja played a great tournament (CWG). He gained a lot of confidence during the tournament. From start to finish, she was a completely different player. The emergence of Sreeja was clearly visible. In the mixed doubles we combined well, we had a good understanding. We both had good confidence individually which was seen on the table. It was very, very important to be able to take that form from single to double (mixed).

Sharath Kamal and Sreeja Akula (PTI photo)
Were you surprised with three gold medals in Birmingham?
I never thought I’d win three gold medals. I was hoping I could win medals, no matter what color. Winning 3-4 medals is what I was looking for. One or the other thing fell into place. We won team gold, gained a lot of confidence. That ‘juggernauted’ (us) in the double and in the individual categories.
What will you attribute this historic performance to?
It has a lot to do with peaking at the right time and gaining that confidence. It didn’t happen overnight or suddenly, like we didn’t know how we did it. This (more or less) happened in 2006. I don’t know how it happened (then), it happened. But this time there was a clear process to reach the timely peak, both body and mind working in tandem and reaching the best level. In the end we got out of it successfully.

So you mean that the 2006 Sharath was an unbridled brilliance and that of 2022 is all about process and planning?
Yes a lot. It was just like that. A lot of things were taken into consideration (this time), a lot of things were under control. We have been constantly working on some sort of schedule that we will have and have tried to simulate it with consecutive games. It was pretty much in sync with the whole thing. So everything was very well planned.

But your consistency remained unmatched. Manika Batra had a 2018 CWG dream but couldn’t keep that level in Birmingham. What’s the secret behind Sharath Kamal doing it year after year?
Being able to adapt and step out of the comfort zone every time, overcome a challenge and constantly work to move forward. I think there is healthy internal competition, where we are trying to push each other to improve. This is also something that is helping me.

Sharath Kamal (Photo Reuters)
You said before you flew to Birmingham that the 2024 Paris Olympics are really part of your next set of goals. Have you already thought about life beyond that point?
I will stay with the game. The game is my identity. I haven’t decided what exactly I’m going to do. But I will be there to help these kids, mentoring them, building a structure or a system for the new generations.
When you enter the twilight of your career leading up to Paris Olympicshow sure are you of the generation that will take over?
I don’t have to worry. It (the future of the Indian TT) is in the right hands. These guys are going to do better than what I did. As I said, there is a good bond, a good team spirit and at the same time there is a good internal competition between us to keep pushing each of us forward. These guys will do well. There is no doubt about it.