Indian paddlers make
winning start

Indian paddlers, taking part in the Commonwealth Games for the first time, began their campaign in the table tennis team event on a promising note, in Manchester, on Friday.

The men's team had no difficulty in brushing aside the challenge of lowly Maldives by a 3-0 margin, while the women's team had to dig deep into their reserves to get past Wales 3-2 in a keenly-contested affair.

Displaying very good form, the talented Sourav Chakraborty gave the Indians the lead with a facile 11-4, 11-3, 11-4 victory over Ahmed D' Mirzai of Maldives in what turned out to be a rather one-sided contest.

Former national champion Soumyadeep Roy then consolidated the position for his team with a convincing 11-6, 11-6, 11-5 victory over Shuree Ibrahim while Subhajit Saha clinched the issue with a 12-10, 11-9, 11-2 win over Rasheed Ali.

The going was not as smooth for the women's team, which paid the price for a rather erratic display but still managed to hold their nerves in the crucial stages to move into the second round.

Poulumi Ghatak provided the perfect start for the team with an easy 11-6, 11-4, 11-6 verdict over Davies Siwan of Wales, displaying an attacking brand of table tennis.

But young Mouma Das failed to keep the momentum going as she lost 7-11, 9-11, 7-11 to her spirited opponent, Dunton Betnam, allowing her to level the score 1-1.

However, India soon took the lead when the experienced N R Indu compensated for the loss by prevailing over Lake Natasha with a hard-fought 11-2, 8-11, 7-11, 11-6, 11-3 scoreline in a contest that saw fortunes fluctuate from one player to the other till the very end.

Wales managed to draw level again when Poulumi, who played very well in the first match, went down to Dunton Betnam 6-11, 5-11, 4-11 rather tamely.

With both the teams winning two matches each, the tie-breaker rule was applied. Mouma Das, playing the deciding match, did not disappoint her teammates as she kept her cool in the crucial stages to carve out a thrilling 10-12, 11-7, 11-6, 11-6 victory.