Veteran Table Tennis - 2018: Dr. Sainath, Mamatha strike gold

Dr. Sainath and  Mamatha from Mysuru won their group Table Tennis  Singles titles in N.V. Raman Memorial Karnataka Veteran’s Ranking Table Tennis Tournament, the first of the new season, held at Malleshwaram Association in Bengaluru on May 26 and 27. Dr. Sainath, playing first time in 75 year Men’s Category beat Gopalan from Bengaluru in the final 3-1, to win the trophy and Rs.800 cash prize. K.V. Krishnamurthy (Mysuru) and Satya Narayana (Bengaluru) both veteran stalwarts with many titles, lost in semi-finals to Gopalan and Dr. Sainath respectively. Mamatha scored a facile victory over Soumya (entering Veterans category first time) with her powerful stroke. In semi final, Soumya, wife of Men’s 40+ champ, Sandeep, beat Bhavna, a very consistent player with many women’s titles. Mamatha strode past Lathika, last year’s Asian 65+Women’s title holder in Sri Lanka, in the other semi-final to reach final. The ‘Ladies Cup’ will be held in Bengaluru on June 16 and 17.