Sunday, January 30, 2011

Chen Qi wins English Open Pro Tour

Chen executes his trademark backhand service receive
Finally, Chen Qi stepped out of the shadows of his illustrious team mates. He beat 2nd seed Ma Lin 11-5, 11-4, 11-13, 14-12, 11-4 in the finals of the English Open Pro Tour Table Tennis tournament.

Earlier, in the semi-finals, he beat the formidable Wang Liqin.

China is fielding most of its top players right from the start of the season at all the Pro tour tournaments starting from the Slovenian open. The top players again assemble for the other tournaments that follow soon. The aim seems to be to get them in shape for the World Individual championships at Rotterdam.

Player Profile: Sourav Saha

Sourav executes his powerful forehand topspin stroke
Sourav Saha is one of the most promising youngsters India has produced in the recent years. He was always in the shadows of Sathiyan, Soumyajit, and Harmeet for a while, but his performances this year in the Senior section have brought him applauds. With this, he has proved that he does belong to the elite league.

Sourav adopts a fast paced game and combines it with tremendously quick movement around the table. He does not hesitate to take risks and goes into an all out attack no matter who the opponent is. His double flanked attack helps him dominate his rivals in age categories as well as in the Men's section.

He beat his senior state mate and Commonwealth medallist, Soumyadeep Roy at Kolkata recently. Roy almost annexed the Men's title at the recently concluded Senior Nationals.

Name: Sourav Saha

Date of Birth: 10.08.1993

Club: Naihati Youth Association

Coaches/Trainers: Mr. Mihir Ghosh

TT Idol: Achanta Sharath kamal

Ambition: To win a medal for India at the Olympics

Achievements: Cadet National Champion, Sub-jr National Runners up, Junior Nationals semi-finalist, 10th place in World Cadet Challenge, Silver Medalist in Senior Nationals in Teams.

Best win (over a player): Soumyadeep Roy in Senior Nationals, Kolkata

Best win (a tournament): Cadet National Championship

Ma Lin to clash with Chen Qi in the English Open Pro Tour

Ma Lin beat compratriot, Wang Hao in seven games to book a place in the finals against the younger southpaw Chen Qi at the English Open Pro Tour event at Sheffield.

Qi beat the experienced Wang Liqin 4-3 in a cliff hanger in which the decider went down to the wire. Qi eventually prevailed 12-10 in the seventh game.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Hollywood Superstar Susan Sarandon splits from her Table Tennis club owner mate

The great actress of yesteryear, Sarandon reportedly split up with business partner Jonathan Bricklin and is now single.  

The Oscar winner was dating Bricklin since breaking up from her previous partner of 23 years Tim Robbins.

Bricklin and Saradon are co-owners of a franchise of Table Tennis clubs named Spin at New York. It is well known that Sarandon is a big fan of the game.


Liz Hurley gets bitten by Ping Pong on her nose

No, she is not one more of the celebrities that get bitten by the sport.
Liz Hurley, rumoured to be dating Cricket star, Shane Warne, was bitten by her pet parrot, Ping Pong.

It is not clear why they chose to name the pet Amazon blue fronted parrot by the popular sport, but we don't want to complain. Hurley received the bird as a gift for Christmas. She is reportedly hoping that it is just adjusting time for Ping Pong. She is currently spending time researching parrot bites on Youtube!
Here's one that she probably watched. Hope her's gets gentler.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F46-FY5rBYU




Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Celebrity Table Tennis

Photo by John Schneide. Tennis legend wields the Table Tennis racket with flair.

Name: Andre Agassi

Wikipedia: At age 13, Andre was sent to Nick Bolletteri's Tennis Academy in Florida. He was meant to stay for only 3 months because that was all his father could afford. After ten minutes of watching Agassi play, Bollettieri called Mike and said: "Take your check back. He's here for free," claiming that Agassi had more natural talent than anyone else he had seen.

Sport: Lawn Tennis

Achievements: 8 Grand Slams, 1 Olympic Gold. Only one of two players to achieve a career Golden slam (tied with Nadal)

English Open ITTF Pro Tour starts tomorrow


The Pro tour tournament at Sheffield starts tomorrow. Five of the top Ten players in the World are participating.

Here's a list of the top players:

Sl No. Name     Country  Sex   Rank

1 WANG Hao   CHN M 3

2 ZHANG Jike   CHN M 4

3 MA Lin   CHN M 5

4 WANG Liqin   CHN M 7

5 XU Xin   CHN M 9

6 OH Sang Eun   KOR M 13

7 CHEN Qi   CHN M 14

8 RYU Seung Min   KOR M 16

9 GAO Ning   SIN M 24

10 CHEN Weixing   AUT M 25

Jun Mizutani wins fifth national title, breaks record


The prodigiously talented Jun Mizutani has broken the Japanese national title record by winning the country's highest Table Tennis title for the 5th time. By doing this, he broke the record held by Fujii Norikazu and Saito Kiyoshi who won the titles in 1946-49 and 1982-85 respectively.

21 year old Jun is currently ranked 7th in the world, the highest he has reached in his young career.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Alexandre Cassin - another prodigy makes his mark

 Does his possess talent? Oodles of it!

Alexandre is just 12 years old and he won the U-15 section at the Hungarian open Table Tennis Championship. He is from CAM, Bordeaux (France).

See him in action. Unbelievable play for a 12 year old.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66aHGGlxVCU

The kid already has a string of titles on his name. Watch out for more of him in the future!

Xu Xin bags Slovenian Pro Tour title

Xu Xin is all concentration while serving
Xu Xin of China beat countryman and the more famous Ma Lin to win Championship at Slovenia. Xu won 4-2. Ealier Ma Lin had beaten World Champ and top seed, Wang Hao in the semi-finals. Ma Lin blamed his new rubber for his loss in the finals. Xu won his semi-final match with another Chinese talent and second seed Zhang Jike.

Tennis Pro has a go at Table Tennis

Photo courtesy AP (Associated Press)
Rafael Nadal seems to be weilding the Table Tennis racket with the same flair that he does for Lawn Tennis

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Sharath, Shamini are the Champions

 A Sharath Kamal and Kumaresan Shamini won the Singles titles at the 72nd Nationals.

While Sharath had to toil from the brink of defeat, Shamini won more comfortably. World No. 40 Sharath was down 3-2 and down 9-7 in the 5th game when Soumyadeep Roy (ranked 245) gave away 4 points playing erratically. Sharath played solidly in the decider to seal the deal.

This was Sharath's 5th straight National title, which is a record. On the other hand, the cool and calm Shamini won her 2nd title.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Sharath, Soumyadeep in Semis

Favourites Sharath Kamal and Soumyadeep Roy reached the semi finals of the 72 nd National and Inter State Table Tennis Championships at Kolkata. Sharath beat giant killer, Anirban Nandi 4-0 in the quarterfinals. Sharath now meets state-mate R Abishek in the semi-finals.

Soumyadeep plays young Soumyajit Ghosh in the other semi-finals.

In the women's section, it is Nandita Saha vs Mamta Prabhu and K Shamini vs Madhurika Patkar. The top seed Mouma Das was shocked by Nandita in the quarter finals. The player to watch here is Madhurika, who seems to be in sharp form.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Sharath advances to the Round of 32

A Sharath Kamal of PSPB beat Tanmay Dutta of Mah B to reach the second round of the main draw at the Senior National Table Tennis Championships at Kolkata. Sharath earned a fairly easy 4-0 win.

Monday, January 17, 2011

72nd Senior Nationals and Inter State Table Tennis Championships

The Nationals are on at Kolkata after a long gap. One of the clear memories is of the State's own Arup Basak winning the crown.

Currently, the Team events are being played.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Werner Schlager academy opens

Austria's legend and the 2003 World Champion, Werner Schlager opened his academy. It is aptly named Werner Schlager Academy (WSA) and is located in Schwechat on the outskirts of Vienna.

The complex, Multiversum, has two halls; one dedicated to table tennis and the other to various events.

Over 43 million Euros have gone into making this world class facility. It is funded by the Austrian Government and the Schwechat Municipality.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Celebrity Picture of the Day: Wayne Rooney

Rooney executes a backhand push
Photo courtesy Steve Grant

We all know that Rooney is good with a bigger ball with his feet. He does seem to handle a smaller one with the hands pretty well.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Sirisena and Ishara win title at Sri Lanka National Table Tennis Championships

Ishara Madurangi of Sri Lanka Air Force won her fourth National Table Tennis title at Mount Lavinia. In the Men's singles, Rohan Sirisena beat Dinesh Deshappriya to bag the title. Later, they both combined to win the Mixed doubles title. Ishara also won the women's doubles title, thus ending the tournament with a brilliant triple crown. 

Men's Singles
Rohan Sirisena (Sri Lanka Air Force) beat Dinesh Deshappriya ( Sri Lanka Navy) 11/04, 10/12, 10/12, 11/03, 11/05, 11/08

Women’s Singles
Ishara Madurangi (Sri Lanka Air Force) beat Nuwani Navodya (Dharmasoka – Ambalangoda) 12/10, 11/06, 08/11, 11/03, 06/11, 10/12,11/08

Monday, January 10, 2011

Picture of the Day: Brian Lara and Table Tennis

We already know Sachin Tendulkar plays Table Tennis. Where there is Sachin, can Lara be far behind?

Brian Lara hints at his Table Tennis intentions. What do you think of the grip? Is it good?

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Amalraj Anthony in the Slovenian Table Tennis League


Did you know that the second highest Internationally ranked Indian Table Tennis player competes in the Slovenian league?  
The top players there are Sereda, Klasic, Marek and a generous sprinkling of Chinese (common in almost all top Table Tennis leagues).

Current Standings

1. Amalraj Anthony MSK Malacky A 8 19 19 0 57 : 8 100,00 %
2. Klásek Marek Stavoimpex Holíč A 8 15 15 0 45 : 5 100,00 %
3. Wang Yang Stavoimpex Holíč A 7 12 12 0 36 : 6 100,00 %
4. Mrkvička Radek Stavoimpex Holíč A 10 19 18 1 55 : 6 94,74 %
5. Bai He ŠKST Bratislava A 8 17 16 1 48 : 9 94,12 %
6. Gumáň Martin ŠKST Bratislava A 6 12 11 1 34 : 8 91,67 %
7. Krkoška Peter ŠKST Bratislava A 6 12 11 1 35 : 10 91,67 %
8. Palček Martin Stavoimpex Holíč A 7 12 11 1 35 : 10 91,67 %
9. Illáš Erik SK SATEX Int. A 9 21 18 3 56 : 16 85,71 %
10. Jaslovský Martin SK SATEX Int. A 10 22 18 4 57 : 23 81,82 %

Player Profile: India's top Defense Player - R Abishek


NAME                              :
R.ABISHEK


DATE OF BIRTH               :
29th December, 1987


FATHER’S NAME              :
P.J.RAVICHANRAN


MOTHER’S NAME             :
USHA


SPORT                             :
Table Tennis

PRACTISING CENTRE       :
Lord’s Table Tennis Academy, Chennai
EDUCATION                     :
B.Com



ACHIEVEMENTS:
COMMONWEALTH GAMES 2010 – BRONZE MEDAL – TEAM
CURRENT WORLD RANK  - 231
ITTF PRO TOUR HARMONY CHINA OPEN, 2010
  • ENTERED MAIN DRAW ROUND 1 BY OVERCOMING WORLD NO. 152 & 229 IN THE GROUP STAGE
ITTF PRO TOUR EGYPT OPEN, CAIRO, 2010
  • ENTERED MAIN DRAW ROUND 1 AND BEAT WORLD NO. 394 & 573 IN THE QUALIFYING ROUNDS
ITTF PRO TOUR INDIAN OPEN, NEW DELHI, 2010
ENTERED MAIN DRAW ROUND 1 BY BEATING 3 HIGHER WORLD RANKED PLAYERS (WORLD NO. 232, 354 & 650) IN THE GROUP STAGE.

US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS, GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN, 2010
ENTERED MAIN DRAW ROUND 1 BEATING WORLD NO. 423 IN THE GROUP STAGE

ITTF PRO TOUR KUWAIT OPEN, KUWAIT CITY, 2010
ITTF PRO TOUR GERMAN OPEN, BERLIN, 2010
3RD WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS, LINZ, AUSTRIA, 2005
FINISHED AS JUNIOR WORLD RANK 60 FOR THE YEAR 2005
11TH ASIAN JUNIOR T.T CHAMPIONSHIPS, NEW DELHI, INDIA, 2005
11TH SOUTH ASIAN JUNIOR T.T CHAMPIONSHIPS (SAF), NEW DELHI, INDIA, 2005
GOLD     - TEAM EVENTS
SILVER   - INDIVIDUALS
BRONZE - MIXED DOUBLES

10TH SOUTH ASIAN JUNIOR T.T CHAMPIONSHIPS (SAF), NEW DELHI, INDIA, 2004
GOLD     -  INDIVIDUALS & TEAMS
BRONZE -  MIXED DOUBLES

CURRENT NATIONAL RANK IN MEN- NO.2
2009-10 : NATIONAL RANK NO.7 IN MEN
2007-08: NATIONAL RANK NO.1 IN U-21
2003-04 : JUNIORS NATIONAL RANK NO 2
2003-04 : NATIONAL CHAMPION IN DOUBLES

Friday, January 7, 2011

Celebrities who play Table Tennis

Sachin sharing your passion
We all know that Table Tennis is a hugely popular sport, played in over 200 countries around the world. Did you know that Sachin Tendulkar, Salman Rushdie, Vladimir Putin, Prince Charles, Bill Clinton, Hu Jintao and many others share this passion?

We will share some names and photographs on this Web site.
  • Sachin Tendulkar (again)
  • Salman Rushdie - Famous Author
  • Shirley Temple - Famous Actress
  • Susan Sarandon - Actress (Big one - Co-owner of SPiN, New York TT and Social Club. Thanks Sushrut!)
  • David Cameron - Prime Minister of England
  • Goh Chok Tong - Former Prime Minister of Singapore
  • Lee Kuan Yew- Former Prime Minister Singapore
  • Tony Blair - Prime Minister of United Kingdom
  • Camilla Parker Bowles - Duchess of Cornwall
  • Prince Charles of Britain
  • George H.W. Bush
  • Felipe Calderon - President of Mexico
  • Bill & Hillary Clinton - President and First Lady US (1993-2001)
  • Hu Jintao - Chinese president
  • Richard Nixon - Ex US President
  • Göran Persson - Former Prime Minister of Sweden

Ariel Hsing is the Youngest ever US Table Tennis Champ


Ariel Hsing became the youngest ever US Table Tennis Champion. She beat Lily Zhang in the finals. Ariel also won the U-21 Women's title.

Titles in the junior and cadet girls was the consolation for Lily Zhang.

Both Ariel and Lily train at Rajul Seth's ICC at Milpitas, California. Timothy Wang, the Men's Champion from Texas also attends camps and private training sessions at the ICC.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Timo Boll is World No. 1 after a 8 year gap

Breaking News! Timo Boll of Germany ascended to the No. 1 spot in the Table Tennis World Rankings after a gap of 8 years. Ma Long slips to the 2nd spot.

India's shining star, Sharath Kamal is on the 40th spot in the list.
However, the biggest news for India from the lists are the huge jumps by Soumyajit Ghosh, Gnanasekharan Sathiyan, and Harmeet Desai, who occupy the 29th, 40th and 44th position in the Under 18 Boy's section.
Mallika Bhandarkar and Manika Batra have also moved up impressively in the Girl's U-18 section.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Sharath's brilliant win over World no. 18 Christian Suss

Sharath of TSV Grafelfing won over the highly rated Christian Suss of Borussia Dusseldorf in the German league. Here is a video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YThCe6OS7-8

Happy New Year to all our readers

Wish you all success in everything you do, especially in your Table Tennis.
- From the www.tabletennisbug.com team

Ping Pong film - An award winner

Excerpts:
Peco (real name Yutaka Hoshino) and Smile (real name Makoto Tsukimoto) are members of Katase High table tennis club. Peco is charismatic and has a passion for the sport, while Smile is introverted.
..............................................................................................
..............................................................................................
The film then jumps forward several years: Peco has fulfilled his dream of playing professionally in Europe.

Read more about this fascinating film at Wikipedia at the following location:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ping_Pong_%28film%29

Director: Fumihiko Sori