Indore: Sandika Bhattacharjee of West Bengal in Youth Girls Under-15, Gunjan Parasar of Delhi in Under-13 and Ankolika Chakraborty from West Bengal in Under 11 got the pride of places in the seeding list for the ongoing 83rd Cadet & Sub-Junior Nationals at the Abhay Prashal, here on Friday.
Sandika and Gunjan had ensured their top spots with their consistent performance in the four National Ranking championships they participated in during the season. But Ankolika had just one ranking tournament held last year at Dehradun to bank on, besides the qualifying events at the Nationals to seal it.
When the electronic draw for the second stage in three categories was held today after the qualifiers, it became evident that Ankolika would be the only deserving player to get the top perch. But her job will be complete only when she lifts the trophy to etch her name as the first Under-11 Girls player to own the title.
After a few hours of break, the girls will begin their trophy campaigns in each category with two rounds in the main draw. But Ankolika and the rest of the Under-11 girls will play just one round today as it is a draw of 32 players.
In the Under-13 and Under-15 categories, 56 qualifiers that have joined the top-eight seeds in each section will go all out in the race for the coveted crowns, and the sizeable prize money. They will also be keen to seal a spot in the future in the National squads with the new selection panel for the juniors watching their performances. It’s a win-win situation for the paddlers, and they will have to try hard to draw their attention. With that concept alone in mind, the players will put in the extra yard in their efforts in the main draw, especially on the concluding day.
The seeding lists project the domination states like West Bengal, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi. They, besides portending where the future talent of table tennis lies, also sound a grim warning to the rest of India.
The seeding lists:
Youth Girls Under-15: Sandika Bhattacharjee (Ben), Nandini Saha (Ben), Jennifer Varghese (Mah), Hardee Patel (Mah), Saanvi Roy (Ben), Sayani Panda (Ben), Suhani Mahajan (UP), Shubha Bhat (Mah).
Youth Girls Under-13: Gunjan Parasar (Del), Bhoota Raina (Mah), Avisha Karmakar (Ben), Nandini Reena Balaji (TN), Divyanshi Bhowmick (Mah), Kaavya Bhatt (Mah), Ananya Muralidharan (TN), Ishika Umate (Mah).
Youth Girls Under-11: Ankolika Chakraborty (Ben), Krisha Patel (Guj), Prateeti Paul (Ben), Aradhiya Dhingra (Del), Ahona Ray (Ben), Ranjiji Saha (Ben), Tanishka Kalbhairav (Kar), Naisha Rewaskar (Mah).
