Manav Thakkar, Yashaswini Ghorpade crowned national champions
The Petroleum Sports Promotion Board’s (PSPB) Manav Thakkar and Yashaswini Ghorpade were crowned the men’s and women’s singles champions respectively at the 87th Table Tennis Senior National Championships in Indore on Friday. Up against a teenaged Syndrela Das in the women’s singles final, Ghorpade was made to work hard for a 4-3 win to lift the title in a match which lasted over an hour. Ghorpade raced to lead thrice in the match, winning the first, third, and fifth games but Das, who had taken out reigning champion Diya Chitale in the semi-finals, always fought back to equalise. The decider also saw leads exchange hands multiple times before Ghorpade held her nerves in the final moments to secure the title. Later in the day, Thakkar had a rather straightforward run to the title as he took down Railways Sports Promotion Board’s (RSPB) Jeet Chandra 4-1 in the men’s singles final. Thakkar raced to a 2-0 lead in the contest before Chandra put up a fightback in the next two games. Having lost the third game …
