Asian table tennis can boost the sport bigtime in India, says Sharath Kamal

Sharath Kamal, the five-time Olympian and arguably most decorated men’s table tennis player from India, said that the 28th Asian Table Tennis Championships which got underway in Bhubaneswar on Saturday will help in contributing to the growth of the sport in the country. The evergreen Kamal, who retired from the sport earlier this year at 41 years, is the brand ambassador of the event being held at the Kalinga Sports Complex from 11-15 October.

 The continental tournament, which has brought together 22 Asian teams, will serve as a crucial qualification pathway for the 2026 World Teams Table Tennis Championships in London. Odisha, which has built a healthy reputation as one of the major sporting hubs of the country, is hosting the event for the first time where India is fielding a nearly full strength team.

 The likes of India No.1 Sreeja Akula, seasoned pro Manika Batra, promising players like Diya Chitale, Yashaswini Ghorpade among women and Ankur Bhattacharjee, Sourav Chakraborty and Johnson Selvakumar among men will be trying to hold their own against quality competition from the traditional superpowers.

Kamal, a multiple Commonwealth Games gold medallist and Asian Games medallist is currently serving as Co-Chairperson of the ITTF Athletes Commission and Vice-Chairperson of the Indian Olympic Association’s Athletes Commission. “I am deeply honoured to be named the Brand Ambassador for the 2025 Asian Table Tennis Championships in Bhubaneswar. Table tennis has been my lifelong passion and I am thrilled to play a part in promoting this prestigious event that will bring together the finest talent from across Asia,” he said.

 The event is being jointly organized with the support of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI), Asian Table Tennis Union (ATTU), Odisha Table Tennis Association and the Sports & Youth Services Department, Government of Odisha.

 Nearly 500 participants, including players and support staff from 22 countries such as India, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau-China, Bangladesh, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Oman, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Uzbekistan will be seen in action.

 Kamlesh Mehta, a much decorated table tennis icon and currently the TTFI president expressed confidence that Odisha would successfully host the championship when he said at the launch press conference: “Odisha has carved out a special place for itself in sports excellence at the international level.”