“I hope the best is yet to come” - Indian veteran paddler Sharath Kamal ahead of Paris Olympics 2024

Indian veteran table tennis player Sharath Kamal strongly feels that his best is yet to come and insisted that he is improving both physically and mentally ahead of his fifth Olympic Games in Paris, scheduled to start on July 26.

Notably, the Indian table tennis athletes made the cut for the Paris Olympics 2024 via the world rankings route in March 2024 and secured two quotas each in the men's and women's singles categories besides the team events.

"I am happy that I'm scaling new heights with each passing year, besides improving both physically and mentally. I hope the best is yet to come," Sharath told PTI.

Talking about the highlights of his career, he selected the bronze medal (singles) in the Asian Games in 2018 and the gold medal win (singles) at the Commonwealth Games in 2022 in Birmingham as the two top moments of his career.

"To highlight one particular achievement from my career would not do justice to my other achievements. The Asian Games bronze (Jakarta 2018) and Commonwealth Games gold are two of the highs of my career," he said.

Though he faced a few challenges at the Asian Games in 2023, Sharath played a crucial role in propeling the Indian men’s team to secure the Paris 2024 quota following their last-16 finish at the WTT Championships in Busan in February 2024.

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“Hopefully, I have a chance to get that medal” - Sharath Kamal

Having reunited with Italian coach Massimo Costantini, Sharath’s hopes of bagging an Olympic medal have re-fueled. Sharath credited his rigorous training as the main reason behind his longevity and success.

"Back then, I didn't know what getting into the Olympics was. But I have built up into the player I am right now, and hopefully, in my fifth Olympics, I have a chance to get that medal. And once that happens, I can be truly satisfied with my career," Sharath concluded.

With the Paris Olympics 2024 nearing, Sharath Kamal has been consistently working on improving his technical skills and practicing with different levels of players in different conditions.

At Paris 2024, Sharath Kamal will be backed by Harmeet Desai and Manav Thakkar in the men's team while Sathiyan Gnaneswaran is picked as a reserve player. Meanwhile, Sharath and Harmeet will also compete in the men's singles event.

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