CITY’S promising paddler Jennifer Varghese has been seeded top in the Under-15 age category of the Dr Ramesh Yashwant Prabhoo Memorial 1st Maharashtra State Ranking Table Tournament 2021-2022 which gets under way at Prabodhankar Thackeray Krida Sankul, Vile Parle (East) from Friday. The competition will be conducted under the auspices of the Maharashtra State Table Tennis Association. Thirteen-year-old Jennifer, who recently clinched the national Under-15 and Under-17 titles, will also be participating in Under-15 and Under-19 age categories. In the Under-13 girls, Ishika Umate has been seeded third while Jayesh Kulkarni is seeded 8th in U-21. Ishika will be participating in U-15-, U-17 and U-19 girls singles while Adi Chitnis will try his luck in U-17, U-19 and men’s events. Kulkarni will take part in U-19, U-21, Men’s singles while Kaustubh Udhar will feature in men’s singles.

 

Around 60 paddlers from Nagpur are participating in the competition, informed Ashutosh Potnis, Secretary, Nagpur District Table Tennis Association. An overwhelming response of 800 entries have been received for the competition The men’s singles and women’s singles events have attracted entries from 85 and 37 players respectively from all districts across the state. There would also be competition for boys and girls singles in the Under-11, Under-13, Under-15, Under-17, Under-19 and youth boys’ and girls’ in the Under-21 age categories.