Chitale bags national TT title with close victory over Akula

An hour before the final, Diya Chitale approached the practice table with a specific routine prepared.

- Shahid Judge

SURAT: An hour before the final, Diya Chitale approached the practice table with a specific routine prepared. She played for a few minutes with her sparring partner, practicing serves and heavy topspin shots off both wings. Towards the end though, another sparring partner came in whose job was to use the long pimple rubber and simply block everything Chitale would throw at her.

At the Pandit Dindayal Indoor Stadium in Surat, Chitale was to play two-time winner Sreeja Akula in the women's singles final of the Senior National Table Tennis Championships. Akula uses the tricky long pimple rubber on the backhand and Chitale did not want to leave any stone unturned in her bid to win a first senior nationals title.

That last-minute training paid off. Down two games to love in the best-of-seven final, Chitale came back strongly to win 4-3 and clinch the title.