Tokyo Olympics: Paddler Sharath Kamal calls current Indian Table Tennis Team 'best ever'

Following his arrival in Tokyo for the upcoming Olympics, paddler Sharath Kamal on Sunday shared a look of the Olympic athletes' village where athletes from different countries are currently residing. The games are set to begin on 23 July. 

Paddler shares glimpses of Olympic village

The paddler shared a video of the athletes' village and captioned the post as, "Good evening from @Tokyo2020 Olympic Games athletes village." 
 

Best ever table-tennis contingent: Sharath Kamal 

On the other hand, ahead of his departure to Tokyo for the Olympics, Sharath Kamal maintained on Saturday that this is the best Table Tennis contingent India has ever sent to the Olympics.

Talking to the ANI, Kamal said that the contingent is finally set to hit the Olympic games after a long wait. "After a wait of one year with a lot of uncertainties, here we are going into the Tokyo Olympics. Hopefully, this is India's best Olympic Games we've done so far. With regards to table tennis, it's the strongest team. Hopefully, we come back with some medals," the paddler said.

"On that particular match day, if we're able to match up to our opponents, we stand a fair chance. We had tough Olympic qualifications, we beat the World No.5 to qualify for the mixed double spot. If we can continue that, we could be there," he added.

Ready to pull off a few upsets: Kamal

Talking about himself, the young paddler said, "I have never been in such form while going into any Olympic Games. This is going to be the best Olympics. As far as results and performance are concerned, I am no 32 in the world, my highest world rank with which I am going into the Olympics. So I'm sure I'll pull off a few upsets."

In its first,119 athletes to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

A total of 119 athletes from the country, taking part in 18 sports categories and are all set to mark their presence in the Tokyo Olympics. Out of the 119 athletes, 67 are male and 52 are female participants. The number is considered to be the highest in this format of the global competition from the country till date. A total of 69 cumulative events across the 18 sports divisions that India will be participating in is also the highest ever for the country.

Notably, the seasoned Achanta Sharath Kamal had become the first Indian paddler to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic on March 18, 2021, following a dominant win over Pakistan's Muhammad Rameez at the Asian Olympic Qualification tournament in Doha. Kamal's win over Rameez ensured at least a second spot for him and it was enough to secure a spot in the delayed Olympics Games. One quota is awarded to the highest-ranked second-placed player in the event. Sharath being the top-ranked player in the group, secured the berth under the Asian quota. It will be Kamal's fourth appearance at the Olympic Games.