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Indian's most experienced campaigner in the table-tennis team, Achanta Sharath Kamal believes that not winning gold at the upcoming 2018 Commonwealth Games would be a huge disappointment for him and his teammates.
35-year-old Sharath will be partaking in his fourth CWG games and eyeing his seventh medal at the CWG which will be held in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia this time around.
"As far as the men's team is concerned, I would be disappointed if we don't win the Gold medal. We are a fantastic side and are doing very well, we're confident," he said on the sidelines of the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) players draft in Mumbai on Wednesday.
India are currently ranked No.2 at the tournament, only behind England who occupy the No. 1 spot. Singapore and Nigeria are the other teams in the top 4. Having never beaten England at the Commonwealth Games, Sharath is eager to change that this time around.
It must, however, be pointed out that India have got the better of the English at the World Championships on previous occasions.
"If you look at the rankings, India have improved, we're doing pretty well in the international circuit. Everybody has been talking about India's growth, even the Chinese have come up to me and said India is doing well. The whole world is talking about us," beamed Sharath.
Currently ranked 71st in the world, Kamal believes Indian paddlers are no-more pushovers in the international circuit. He believes playing competitive tournaments at the European level has helped him and his younger teammates immensely. Sharath is seeded 4 in the competition while 25-year-old Sathiyan Gnanasekaran will be seeded 2.
"International players now are aware of Indian players, now they know us by names and know how we play. In the last 7-8 years, all of us have moved to Europe and have found their way. They are at their peak now," he signed off.
