India claim all but one title at Junior and Cadet Table Tennis championship
For Anirban, who had entered quarter-finals last year, it was a quantum jump. Anirban defeated team mate and No. 8 seed Birdie Boro in the final 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 in a see-saw encounter. Anirban had all ready answers to Boros guiles and finished the game with a great winner to the right of Boro.
- Press Trust of India
- Updated: August 17, 2013 12:28 PM IST
Moumita Das emerged champion in Cadet Girls' singles as India claimed all but one title at the ITTF El Salvador Junior and Cadet Open table tennis championships.
Like at Guatemala championships last week, the only title that eluded the Indians was the Cadet Boys' singles crown.
The surprise finalist Arjun Ghosh won silver medal after going down 1-3 (11-8, 13-15, 8-11, 12-14) to No. 2 seed Kwan Man Ho from Hong Kong in the Cadet Boys final.
Though the unseeded Ghosh kept himself in the reckoning with his fine returns and excellent defence, the Mexican proved a notch better than the Indian.
At Guatemala, Birdie Boro had lost the Cadet Boys final to Cuban Livan Martinez but this time he had bowed out to the eventual winner, in the semi-finals 7-11, 11-13, 9-11.
In Cadet Girls' singles Moumita, a player with no world ranking, accounted for Spain's Zhang Xuan, the No.2 seed, by the very narrowest of margins in a five-game final duel (11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 11-13, 11-9).
Moumita had beaten compatriot and top seed Sagarika Mukherjee in five games (11-6, 9-11, 9-11, 14-12, 11-5) in the semifinals.
India also clinched Cadet Boys' Doubles and Cadet Girls' Doubles gold medals.
Anirban Ghosh and Arjun Ghosh joined forces to win the Cadet Boys' Doubles title beating colleagues Birdie Boro and Lalrin Puia in the final 10-12, 11-4, 11-2, 9-11, 11-8 and Moumita Dutta and Sagarika Mukherjee did an encore beating the Peruvian duo Valeria Cuba and Andrea Guzman 14-12, 11-8, 12-10.
Anirban Ghosh and Sreeja Akula won the Junior Boys and Junior Girls singles titles, their maiden efforts on the ITTF Junior circuit.
For Anirban, who had entered quarter-finals last year, it was a quantum jump. Anirban defeated team mate and No. 8 seed Birdie Boro in the final 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 in a see-saw encounter. Anirban had all ready answers to Boro's guiles and finished the game with a great winner to the right of Boro.
If Anirban Ghosh's win was a bit of surprise for many, the success recorded by Sreeja Akula in the Junior Girls' singles event against a much-known No. 2 seed Sagarika Mukherjee stunned everyone.
Sreeja had knocked out Dominican Republic's top seed Eva Brito in the quarter-finals and Spain's fourth seed Zhang Xuan in the semi-finals before beating compatriot Sagarika Mukherjee.
And deservingly, Akula posted another six-game win (8-11, 11-6, 12-10, 9-11, 11-5, 11-4) against the No. 2 seed and in-form player.