Two of the most exciting young talents from India, Utkarsh Gupta and Selena Selvakumar, are eager to make a mark while representing Maharashtra United in the on-going season of Ultimate Table Tennis. Utkarsh, a promising youngster from Delhi has been playing the sport since he was four, while Selena, who hails from Chennai, picked up the bat when she was seven.
Both players not only have a common team to play for in Maharashtra United but their careers also bloomed in similar fashion. Utkarsh’s father has been the driving force behind his career, doubling up as his coach, while Selena’s mother for many years trained her for two hours every day. During the pre-season draft, Utkarsh was Maharashtra United’s first pick in Round 8 while Selena was second pick in Round 7.
Selena’s golden sweep
Selena grabbed headlines when she completed a golden sweep in the Egypt Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Open last year winning the team event, junior girls’ singles and doubles titles at Sharm El Sheikh. “This is my second season and I’m hoping to get more chances to prove myself,” said Selena, who is currently India’s top ranked female youth player.
She still counts her first gold as the most special. “My First national ranking tournament, I won a gold at 2010 Srinagar and then I started taking the game more seriously,” she says. “I remember in the initial stages my mother use to train me in the morning for two hours and then I used to train with my coach for two hours in the evening.”
For a 17-year old, she is getting the early exposure with top Indian and foreign players in the likes of Madhurika Patkar and Anthony Amalraj. Both of them were a part of the Commonwealth glory grabbing gold medals in team events at the Gold Coast. “Our coach pushes us every day on the table and makes sure we do it right, they want us to play smartly so they train us according to that,” she says. “After UTT my focus will be on Korea and Australia open in July.”
Utkarsh’s break into majors
Utkarsh on the other hand is India No. 6 (Youth) and looking to make the most of his UTT experience rubbing shoulders with the likes of Kristian Karlsson, Joao Monteiro, Amalraj among others.
Since 2004, he has bagged 34 gold medals in national and international events. The youngster has the mettle but has not been able to break in because of inconsistency in major games. Some experience alongside senior paddlers will fill the puzzle for him. “I want to learn from my teammates as much as I can and then want to improve my rankings eventually and aim for a top-8 finish at the end of this year,” says the 21-year old.
The youngster has been inspired by his father who doubles up as his coach. “He plays a dual role for me, he is a coolest dad but he equally strict as a coach. While I am on the table he makes sure I give my 200%. Sometimes we get in the bets before competition, I won a Play station after my win in 2010,” he recalls
