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Just the time to start afresh
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Kerala has produced many national stars, but now even a quarterfinal entry in the sub-junior and junior zonals is being hailed as a major achievement, says STAN RAYAN
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THIS SHOULD be her season for rejoicing. Sruthi Ranjith, the pretty little girl from Kozhikode, shook the Kerala table tennis world early this month when she won her maiden State junior title. And she achieved the feat in Thiruvananthapuram, the State women's ping-pong headquarters for a few years now.
But despite being the best girl in the State on current form, Sruthi will not be a part of the Kerala side for the inter-State team events at the 65th Junior Nationals, which begin at the Rajiv Gandhi indoor stadium in Kochi today. The news must be very disappointing for the talented lass.
The team selection is based on points won in the State circuit tournaments this season and Sruthi does not have enough of the precious things in her kitty.
The top four make it to the Kerala team for the inter-State and the 16-year-old Sruthi is fifth in the list, missing the bus by just four points. The young girl, who trains with boys - including her younger brother Abhinav - as there are very few quality female players in Kozhikode (they are all in Thiruvananthapuram), will however figure in the open events, in singles and doubles.
"We pick the team purely on points, consistency is rewarded here. So Sruthi will not play the team championship,'' said the Kerala Table Tennis Association secretary E.Regikumar.
"This is a very rare case. This is probably the first time the State champion is missing from the team after the points system was introduced in the State circuit. It's very unfortunate, but we're unable to help," said Kerala's seasoned official, Titus Philipose, who is also the vice-president of the national federation, the TTFI. An automatic berth for the State champion in the team could be a wise solution.
"Sruthi is a very clever player. She uses her brains a lot and she has lovely footwork. She will be a big advantage to the team,'' said the Kerala coach Elias Thomas a couple of days before the Junior Nationals. The sad thing is Elias was not even aware that Sruthi had been left out of the side for the inter-State events.
That just about sums up the scene at the Kerala camp on the eve of the mega event. Complications and confusions apart, the mood at the camp is one of nervous caution. Despite producing a few national stars like Olympian Ambika Radhika, V.Sreenivasan, Bona Thomas John and R.S.Balachandran, the sport has sunk to the depths of despair in Kerala these days. Even a pre-quarterfinal or quarterfinal entry in the junior or sub-junior zonals is now being hailed as a major achievement.
A few years ago, Sreenivasan had spoken about a certain fear factor and inferiority complex when Kerala players play in the National circuit. "We have a good game and good strokes, the problem is all in the mind. And these things often turn out to be the main stumbling blocks for our progress,'' he had said.
Sreenivasan was able to overcome these mental blocks when he began to play the National circuit regularly. He shed his inhibitions, grew in confidence and stature and even figured among the top ten men in the country a few times. He even lifted the Tamil Nadu State title, overcoming a strong opposition.
Radhika also experienced the virtues of playing in the national circuit regularly and became the first Kerala player to win the Senior Nationals.
Unfortunately, despite the rich pages from the past, Kerala players do not take their history lessons seriously. For many of them, including Meenu Raj who was said to be the most promising youngster to emerge on the State scene a few years ago, table tennis appears to be just a bridge to the medical and engineering college seats.
And in most cases, the current bunch of players spend just about two hours every day for the game. Hours good enough for the State circuit, but just not enough for a serious shot at the national circuit which is now dominated by players from Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
The South Zone is the only zonal event the Kerala players figure in, in the national circuit these days. "We have a lot to study, we just don't have the time,'' said Meenu Raj, the Kerala women's champion but still a junior. A good majority of the State `ping pongers' score over ninety per cent in academics and that's just about the only consolation.
The Junior Nationals will see some of India's brightest stars on stage. And with a few players from the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board and Centre of Excellence, coached by foreign coaches, in the fray, there will be plenty of styles, techniques and action to watch and absorb.
The Junior Nationals will also be a right time for the Kerala players, coaches and officials to start afresh, to transform the dismal scene. And since the organisers, the Kerala and Ernakulam District associations, plan to honour its former national champions during the closing ceremony, a sincere effort should be taken to listen to these stars and to try out the steps, which they took on their way to glory. The sport is packed with experienced officials, many of them former players, but a bigger effort is needed to nurse table tennis back to health here.
Well for now, it's lights, action and ... love-all.
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