Ace paddler Sanil hangs around CWG ticket

“Nobody likes to get in the team like this,” says paddler Sanil Shetty, pursing his lips, in two minds after being named as Soumyajit Ghosh’s replacement for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games that start from April 4. Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) has suspended Ghosh after a teenager lodged an FIR accusing him of rape.

For an athlete who has been a part of two CWGs with a bronze in 2014, going to another one is a dream-like achievement. But what irks him is going at the cost of a friend. The men’s contingent of Shetty, Sharath Kamal, Amalraj Anthony, Harmeet Desai, and Sathiyan Gnansekaran is a close-knit unit, as they practise and train with each other.

“Six of us were training together and the coach has to decide any five. So at that moment he decided those five, and I was disappointed,” says Sanil, drawing a positive before knowing that he was going. “Instead of CWG, the coach named me for Asian Cup, which is from 6 to 8 next month, and I am going but I am ready for both.”

The federation has not yet confirmed if Shetty will join the team but it is almost certain that he will replace his colleague. And if the worst-case scenario does occurs, and he does not get the CWG ticket, the skilled paddler will compete in the Asian Cup, where only 16 top table tennis players take part.

The rule is that only a sick or an injured player can be replaced. The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) is still pushing to send Shetty to reduce the pressure on the other four paddlers.

Best of the rest
 What happened that makes him call 2017 the best year of his career? “I got engaged,” he says with a laugh and his cheeks turning pink. “No, but in close games, I used to get passive. In 2015 or 2016, if I had 10 close matches, I’d only win one or two but this year I’d win eight or nine,” he reflects his confidence in his words.

Sanil was struggling when 2017 started. He had a world rank of above 200 and also Ghosh knocked him out in the Senior Nationals in the round of sixteen. The slump was troubling the 28-year old but tables turned for him after the first season of Ultimate Table Tennis.

He was popularly termed as the ‘foreigner slayer’ for his record against non-Indian players in the league. It got even better for him after his team Falcons TTC lifted the title in the inaugural season. With this, he took the game with a different approach seizing a decent number of medals, including three medals in Bulgaria Open, Nigeria Open and Polish Open that was held this year.

“I started with a World ranking of 250-260 and this January, I was 62. I had quite a big jump and I beat a lot of top-ranked players in the world. I made a good performance in the German League as well,” recalls Shetty, who reached his career’s best ranking.

“Last year was very stable. With every month I became better and after UTT, I gained a lot of confidence after beating top players of the world. I gained confidence in pro tours,” he adds.

La Familia
He grew up idolising his father and his elder brother Sachin Shetty, who also coaches local players. However, Sanil has emerged to be the most successful in terms of results. There is only one person in the family who is least acquainted with the game, his mother. But she is the most involved when it comes to her younger son. “My mother doesn’t know anything about TT, but she still calls me and talks about the game. These nice words motivate you,” he says. “I owe a lot to them.”

While Sanil plays for Falcons TTC, his brother will be working as the coach of another franchise Dabang Smashers TTC. Even last year, Sachin was coaching RP-SG Mavericks, and the younger one does a little banter in the context of beating his sibling’s team last season. “Last year also I won against his team and this year also we’ll do the same,” he grins.

While both CWG and Asian Cup are competitions of great importance, Sanil’s fate will be decided in a couple of days. He is looking to better this year with eyes on a ranking of top 40. Both contests could allow him to follow the path but who knows where his heart is at?