The Inorbit Mall on Pune's Nagar Road is a popular hangout for students of the many colleges that dot the area. Had any of them visited the mall over the last weekend, a strange sight was in store: a table tennis tournament underway right in the middle of the mall.
Turns out this was not the first time this has happened. “Inorbit held a similar event in Vadodara in 2004,” said Kamlesh Mehta, a retired table tennis professional and Arjuna Award winner. “The response there was terrific so we decided to continue it and it’s been a big success here as well.”
The problem common to most non-cricket sports in India is poor audience participation. However, by taking the game directly to the people, Rohit Choudhury, one of the organisers, thinks they might have hit upon a solution.
“A lot of people may not even be aware of table-tennis as a sport," he said. But if you go to a mall and see that it is happening right in front of you, there is a chance that some will get interested. We are trying to draw a newer set of audiences.”
Mehta, who was the chief guest at the Pune tournament, concurs with Choudhury and also points out, “People do play table tennis, the participation numbers are not bad. But the problem is that the awareness around it is comparatively low. This is a perfect way to reach the masses.”
While this was just an invitational tournament, would it be possible to hold professional-level tournaments in similar fashion? For professionals accustomed to indoor stadiums, how different was the experience of playing in a packed mall?
“The atmosphere was very different”, said Upendra Mulye, a professional table tennis player who won the men’s singles event. In terms of infrastructure, though, he said that there was not any noticeable difference – the tables, flooring and umpiring all met international standards. However, there were some teething problems with people shuffling about and disrupting concentration levels, shops at both ends of the table, and the mall lighting hitting the table.
Mulye insisted that the odd hiccup should not take away from the bigger picture. “The game itself is spreading this way," he said. "For the players, it is exciting and motivating to have so many onlookers. I think we can host district-level events in a similar situation without the players facing much problems.”
Satifisfied with the Pune success, the organisers are planning to take the event to Bengaluru next. This augurs well for the sport, especially with the first edition of the Indian Table Tennis League scheduled to take place next year. So the next time you go mall-hopping, don’t be surprised if you see India’s top tennis-players battling it out. Just make sure you do not distract them.
Turns out this was not the first time this has happened. “Inorbit held a similar event in Vadodara in 2004,” said Kamlesh Mehta, a retired table tennis professional and Arjuna Award winner. “The response there was terrific so we decided to continue it and it’s been a big success here as well.”
The problem common to most non-cricket sports in India is poor audience participation. However, by taking the game directly to the people, Rohit Choudhury, one of the organisers, thinks they might have hit upon a solution.
“A lot of people may not even be aware of table-tennis as a sport," he said. But if you go to a mall and see that it is happening right in front of you, there is a chance that some will get interested. We are trying to draw a newer set of audiences.”
Mehta, who was the chief guest at the Pune tournament, concurs with Choudhury and also points out, “People do play table tennis, the participation numbers are not bad. But the problem is that the awareness around it is comparatively low. This is a perfect way to reach the masses.”
While this was just an invitational tournament, would it be possible to hold professional-level tournaments in similar fashion? For professionals accustomed to indoor stadiums, how different was the experience of playing in a packed mall?
“The atmosphere was very different”, said Upendra Mulye, a professional table tennis player who won the men’s singles event. In terms of infrastructure, though, he said that there was not any noticeable difference – the tables, flooring and umpiring all met international standards. However, there were some teething problems with people shuffling about and disrupting concentration levels, shops at both ends of the table, and the mall lighting hitting the table.
Mulye insisted that the odd hiccup should not take away from the bigger picture. “The game itself is spreading this way," he said. "For the players, it is exciting and motivating to have so many onlookers. I think we can host district-level events in a similar situation without the players facing much problems.”
Satifisfied with the Pune success, the organisers are planning to take the event to Bengaluru next. This augurs well for the sport, especially with the first edition of the Indian Table Tennis League scheduled to take place next year. So the next time you go mall-hopping, don’t be surprised if you see India’s top tennis-players battling it out. Just make sure you do not distract them.
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