Here to stay: Indian men's table tennis team proves that the gold in Gold Coast was not a one-off

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After the historic success at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, the Indian table tennis contingent travelled to Halmstad, Sweden to take part in the World Team Championships. However, if it were the women who stole all the limelight in Australia, here, it was the men's team that exceeded expectations.

It was the first time that the men's team, comprising Achanta Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty and Anthony Amalraj, were playing in the Championship division.

In their very first appearance in the top division, they managed to finish 13th, their best ever finish in over three decades. The performance also ensured that they have automatically qualified for the Championship division in 2020.

"It was an amazing experience for me, personally. The quality of matches, the level of players I played against...I have never played so many top quality players in one tournament before, you know. Previously, I have played one or two but in Halmstad, there were 7-8 top players," Sathiyan told Sportskeeda.

In a mix of the best paddlers from around the world, the Chennai-born star managed to impress once again as he beat the likes of Gao Ning, Gacina Andrej, Lebesson Emmanuel and Robert Gardos over the last one week. Admittedly, it was a 'satisfying' performance for Sathiyan.

"For me, beating four top players, and for us, finishing 13th, it was overall satisfying. Of course, we could have finished in the top 12, we had chances. However, this being our first time in the Championship Division, I think, we did quite well," he said.

The level of competition at the World Championships was much higher than that at the Commonwealth Games. Despite that, Sathiyan and Co. pulled off some great wins, including the likes of France, Singapore and Croatia. However, the belief that they could pull off some big upsets was always there.

"We were high on confidence after the Commonwealth Games. We were a little bit tired but we were playing well. So although we knew that the level of competition is going to be very high, we believed that we could upset some of the top nations if everyone was playing at their best," the 25-year-old star paddler said.

So near, yet so far

Despite being their first-time in the World Championships, India almost made it tot he top 12

The Indians had a golden opportunity of making it to the top 12, having beaten Poland and Croatia in the group stage. In their final match, all they had to do was beat Austria and Sathiyan and Sharath Kamal had given India a 2-0 lead. However, Austria turned the tables and managed to win the match 3-2.

"Of course, we lost to France in the opening game and that came back to haunt us. But we did manage to get our revenge later on. Then there was the Austria match where we were leading 2-0 but eventually, we ended up losing. It was a tough loss but that's what happens in sport, you can never predict such things."

Looking back, perhaps, the opening fixture against France was the biggest opportunity for India to secure a place in the top 12. With the fixture tied at 2-2, Sathiyan was taking on World No. 10 Simon Gauzy in the decider. The Indian paddler, ranked 46th in the world, had a match point, which could have won India the fixture and given them the perfect start.

However, Gauzy not only managed to save the point but also ended up beating Sathiyan. "Yes, had I won that first match, it would have been much easier for us to be in the top 12," Sathiyan conceded before adding, "But being the first match of such a big stage, I think we did well to give them a tough fight."

India's group itself was the 'group of death'. Certainly, Korea was the strongest team but the other teams like France, Croatia, Austria, Poland all had top quality players. "When you take a look at our group, you'll see we were in the group of death. All the five teams in our group were really strong teams. From Korea to France, even Poland, they all had very good players," Sathiyan said.

'I hope Sharath is still playing in 2020'

Achanta Sharath Kamal has been one of the best performers for India at the World Championships.

If Manika Batra was the star in Gold Coast, it was the age-defying Achanta Sharath Kamal, in Halmstad. The 35-years-old began the campaign with four wins in four matches but the highlight was defeating world No 10 Simon Gauzy.

When asked about the veteran's performance at the World Championships, Sathiyan said, "Sharath was definitely the star performer. He always keeps proving why he is the greatest (in India) and it's amazing how he manages to deliver again and again at the big tournaments. He has always been there to take the pressure. And I'm happy to contribute and convert those 3-1 or 3-2 losses (when only Sharath was winning) to wins.

"Also, I must tell you it was a very difficult tournament for me because I have never played in such a long tournament where we were playing the top level players, again and again, every day. There was no rest in between either. Despite that, the way Sharath played...hats off to him," he added.

The team's next challenge will be the Asian Games, where all the top table tennis nations will be taking part. Winning a medal will be multiple times harder, but Sathiyan is optimistic about India's chances.

"The Asian Games are not going to be easy because the top nations like Hong Kong, Korea, China, Chinese Taipei will be there. But having beaten some of the top players, we are confident. So, I think, we do have a chance. Anything can happen that is what sport is all about," he said.

On being asked where he sees the team in two years time, in 2020 when they will have the World Championships and the Tokyo Olympic Games (provided they qualify, of course), Sathiyan said, "It's a long way ahead. When I go there, I want to be stronger, improve my game. And I would want us to be one of the strong teams, maybe among the top 5 or 6. I want us to be in that position that other countries would want to beat India to win a medal. I hope Sharath is still playing then, giving us that support.

"We do have a formidable young side, me, Harmeet...there's a lot of support from Manav (Thakkar), Sanil. So our setup is solid and if we can improve and keep working hard, we can definitely win medals at the World Championships and the Olympics in 2020."

There will always be what could have been and what could have happened, but the way the men performed in their first-ever appearance in the Championship division speaks volumes of the promise.

Finishing in the top 12 was a possibility, but the bigger picture is that this is India's best-ever finish in 33 years. In fact, this was the first time since 1987 that they even finished in the top 15. If Gold Coast was a sign what this group can achieve, then Halmstad is a definitive stamp.