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A moment to cherish

By clinching the title after a decade-long hiatus, the KBN paddlers proved they have what it takes to be a winner, says J.R. Shridharan

CHAMPIONS ALL The team which did proud to the KBN college

It was a moment to cherish for Vijayawada's Kakaraparthi Bhavanarayana College. After a gap of a decade, the table tennis teams won a grand double by emerging winners in the Acharya Nagarjuna University inter-collegiate tournament, which concluded last week at Nuzvid. In the closely fought finals, KBN men defeated Andhra Loyola College by 3-2, while women outplayed Maris Stella College by 3-0.

Says the college's physical director P S.P. Narendranath: "Table tennis is our strength. Our men's team has been performing consistently well in the inter-college tournaments. We have won the championship four times since its inception. This year, our women's team showed an overwhelming performance by finishing on the top."

As many as 25 paddlers from the college had participated in the all India- Inter-university competitions and many got lucrative jobs due to their achievements in the game.

The college is providing three tables for the players to practice and coach Panduranga Rao imparts training to the players. "The AP Table Tennis Association is also playing a vital role in promoting the game in the One Town area. Apart from players of our college, young schoolchildren around the college are also practising in our college," Mr. Narendranath explains.

Champions galore

It is an interesting fact that all the coaches imparting tips on the game in various TT centres in the district are brilliant products of KBN College. "All the coaches are former university and State players. We are proud of their commitment to popularising the game among the youngsters," says APTTA secretary S.M. Sultan. The awe-inspiring performance enabled the KBN paddlers to grab many slots in the ANU teams, which would be taking part in the South Zone inter-university championship to be held at Viswesvarayya Technological University, Belgaum (Karnataka). "Five players - M. Rajesh, T Rajesh Kumar, R. Phani Sumanth, P. Nalini and S. Keerthi figure in both the teams. The skippers of both the teams are from our college," says their proud coath Panduranga Rao.

KBN College's T. Khan performed well in the inter-collegiate swimming competitions by finishing second in the 50-metre backstroke and third in the 200-metre backstroke.

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