Commonwealth TT: Sharath Kamal, G Sathiyan provide two tales of one gritty fightback

Tasting victory after having smelled defeat on Friday, the Indian men's table tennis team had just one thing in mind. Nah, it wasn't finding an apt location to celebrate beating England 3-2 from 2-0 down in the final and defending its Commonwealth TT Championships gold. It was finding their beds and crashing after almost an hour-long commute from the stadium in Cuttack to their hotel in Bhubaneswar.

"Oh, we're totally exhausted to even think of celebrating anything. It was a long day, with a lot of matches. All we're thinking about right now is having a good night's sleep," G Sathiyan, India's highest-ranked paddler at world No. 24, told DNA late on Friday night from Cuttack.

The subdued reaction to an otherwise incredible fightback was partly because there are still doubles and individual events to follow in the ongoing tournament. However, it was more so because the end result was on the cards.

Only, the script turned out dramatically different from what the Indians would've liked.

Facing an English team without its top gun Liam Pitchford (world No. 15), the more fancied Indian side was expected to finish atop the podium. Victory hopes among home fans only rose after the women's team blanked England 3-0 to clinch its maiden gold of the event before the men walked out for their title clash.

Sharath Kamal, India's most celebrated paddler, looked out of rhythm against world No. 189 Thomas Jarvis in the first of best-of-five matches. All eyes were then on Sathiyan to restore order, but he squandered a two-set advantage to go down to 88th-ranked Samuel Walker.

Under tremendous pressure, birthday-boy Harmeet Desai had no option but to rise to the occasion. And he did, beating David McBeath despite losing the first and third sets.

With a shot in the arm, Sathiyan and Sharath came back for the reverse singles to down Jarvis and Walker, respectively, and ensure that the gold remained with India.

"Such a relief," Sathiyan said. "It was along expected lines, so we wouldn't say we we're all really pumped. The pressure was on us. We knew we had to win, and I'm happy that we could turn it around from the verge of defeat."
Sharath, speaking to this paper after the emotion and exhaustion had settled, chose to look at the lighter side of the arduous clash.

"It's a final everybody wanted to see. If we had won 3-0 like the girls, everyone would've said, 'Oh, there was no competition'. So, we played our cards well," Sharath said with a chuckle.

Seriously, though, he added: "More than us, people around us got excited. The fans, the police personnel at the stadium all got really pumped that we fought back and won. There was a feel-good factor in the end."

It certainly wasn't the case at 0-2. Yet, despite being stunned in the first two battles, the Indians were not shaken, knowing well that the war was far from over.

"I remember when Harmeet was getting ready for his match, Sharath told me, 'Sathiyan, we can still win this 3-2. Stay positive'," Sathiyan recalled.

"We have been in such situations before, where we have won matches from 0-2 down in world championships. So, we knew we if we won the third match, the final was ours for the taking," he added.

The 37-year-old Sharath, who has been there and done that many a times, said he felt obliged to ensure that his troops didn't drop shoulders. That said, he admitted he felt "iffy" after Desai lost the third set with a flurry of unforced errors despite leading 7-2.       

"Even if I don't believe, I need to make them believe. Sathiyan had just lost a match he probably should've won, and I needed to get his spirits up before the next game," Sharath said.

So upset was Sathiyan after his first defeat that he confined himself into the dressing room for a few minutes. However, the 26-year-old knew he had to come back to cheer for Harmeet from India's box on the sidelines. It's exactly what Sharath did during Sathiyan's match after his opening loss.

"The main thing was to know that you have another job to do. When that is at stake, it's important that you totally forget what happened, give it a fresh start and support the team," Sathiyan said.

"Even if you win two matches and the team loses, no one will be happy. It's important that the team crosses the finish line," he added.

And, in the end, it doesn't matter how you cross that line – by bulldozing the opposition or by turning the tables on them.

"Winning a gold medal is winning a gold medal, however you win it," Sathiyan said.

Sharath said: "Winning is a drug that is addictive by itself. It doesn't matter how it comes."

15 Indians advance

Fifteen paddlers gained entry into the main draw of the individual event of the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships on Saturday. While nine paddlers qualified in the women’s category, the men’s qualifiers saw six Indians sailing to the main draw. The women will join the already seeded Archana Kamath, Ayhika Mukherjee and Madhurika Patkar in the main draw.