Experienced Sri Lankan TT team leaves for Thailand
View(s):Sri Lanka Table Tennis team left for Thailand in the early hours on Friday to take part in the 22nd Asian Table Tennis Championship which commenced yesterday and will end on October 3, 2015. An experienced squad of six players consisting of three men and three women players will no doubt be planning to give the strong counterparts tough competition.
Sri Lanka TT Team Pix by Anuradha Bandara
The men’s team is led by former national champion and Sri Lanka’s No.1 ranked player Nirmala Jayasinghe while the current national champion Erandi Warusavithana will be at the helm in the women’s team. Jayasinghe with a wealth of experience in his bag with four World Cup appearances, two Commonwealth and two Asian stints will have to lead from the front to guide the Lankan players for confidence when they lock horns with the strong Asian nations.
The most experienced Sri Lankan in the squad Rohana Sirisena who was involved in the game for over two decades had crowned as national champion on three occasions. Sirisena will have to make use of his experience in the game to book for a berth in the quarter-finals.
The Golden Boy of Sri Lanka Table Tennis Udaya Ranasinghe, a schoolboy from Vidyartha College, Kandy will be able to repeat his performances at the last Junior Asian championship where he won the only Gold Medal by any Lankan TT player, Undoubtedly he will raise a ray of hope for Sri Lanka to go far in the tournament and also make this tiny island a nation to be reckoned with.
Nirmala Jayasinghe Men’s captain
Erandi Warusavithana the present women’s national champion who leads the women’s team is another player rich in experience representing the national team for over five years. She has made her appearance in ten Asian championships and in three World Cups.
Erandi Warusavithana Women’s captain
Having made 43 tours abroad representing the Sri Lanka team the seven time national champion Ishara Madurangi had taken part in seven World Cup competitions, three Commonwealth Games, two South Asian championships and one Asian Championship.
Chamarsara Fernando is a player who is capable of creating an upset in the tourney is ranked No. 3 and No.1 at 21. She too had made her presence at the World Championship and Commonwealth Games and this will be her 8th tour with the national team.
Sri Lanka men’s team is grouped with Kuwait, Bahrain and North Korea while women will compete with Philippines, Bahrain and Malaysia in the preliminary rounds.
Jothipala Samaraweera, former national champion and internationally reckoned player will accompany the team as the Coach and the Tour Manager will be the former Tennis and Table Tennis champion Ms. Vajira Premaratne. - LR