I want to produce more Olympians, says Table Tennis coach Somnath

Somnath Ghosh, personal coach of Sreeja Akula seeks support from Telangana government in creating future stars.

Hyderabad: “I am fully dedicated to table tennis and aim to produce more players like Sreeja from Telangana. However, it will be great if the State government extends support in this endeavour,” says Somnath Ghosh, personal coach of Sreeja Akula.

Somnath who was part of the Indian table tennis contingent at the recently concluded Paris Olympics, says we have the potential to produce champion players. However, to achieve this he says the State government’s unstinted support is required. On the development of the sport in Telangana, the former national paddler says, “I have written to the Telangana government seeking land to develop a facility offering quality training to young talents. My role doesn’t stop at Sreeja. I want to produce more Olympians from the State and this will happen only with support from the right quarters.”

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Reflecting on Sreeja’s maiden Olympics, where she became only the second Indian paddler to reach the pre-quarterfinals in Olympic history, the coach is proud of her achievements. “This was the biggest stage. She should be proud of herself for the way she performed. Her confidence will only grow from here,” Somnath said. “Sreeja had previously struggled against Christina Kallberg and Zeng Jian, but she put up a good show to beat them this time. This makes it special because the Olympics is the pinnacle of sports events,” he added.

However, the 26-year-old’s run was cut short by world no. 1 Yingsha Sun in the round of 16. “It was disheartening to lose after playing so well in the first two sets. We were upset and cried after the game. I felt she was nervous and missed my presence in the field of play. But there’s no point in dwelling on what went wrong. We’ve moved on and are now focused on the next challenge,” the 40-year-old said.

Looking ahead to the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, Somnath is determined to see Sreeja doing well in the next Olympics. “The road to LA will be tough. By then, Sreeja should be in a position to beat the top Chinese players more often,” he stated.

Somnath is also focusing on the next generation of players. “The motivation for them is different now because they see an Olympian in the academy and believe that they can achieve the same. I have identified a few players and will work with them. I’m happy to see some of my academy players doing well in the State championships, but I’ll be thrilled when they achieve success at the national level and represent India,” he concluded.