*Refurbished and decked up, Surat’s PDDU stadium all set for National Games marquee table tennis action

The refurbished and decked-up Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay (PDDU) Indoor Stadium in the heart of the city is witnessing the beginning of the National Games marquee table tennis tournament on Tuesday.

The stadium, inaugurated in December 1998, has been all decorated for the gala event with bright and colourful branding inside the stadium.

The table tennis calendar will include men’s and women’s team championships and five individual events – men (singles and doubles), women (singles and doubles) and mixed doubles.

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*Refurbished and decked up, Surat’s PDDU stadium all set for National Games marquee table tennis action from September 20, Tuesday

This is the second time that a major table tennis competition is being held at the PDDU, following the 20th Avadh Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships in 2015.

Local star Harmeet Desai and Gujarat’s Devesh Karia were part of that Indian squad which won three gold, five silver and seven bronze medals to top the standings seven years ago.

“Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships was the first-ever international TT tournament hosted in Gujarat. We got a lot of praise from all quarters. The success of that event gave us the confidence that we can host more international meets in Gujarat,” said Director of competition Kushal Sangtani.

The local organisers have installed eight brand new tables and have laid out a made-to-order sports carpet from Meerut to give the players an international feel. Interestingly, the same carpet can be used for the badminton competition too later in the Games.

An air-conditioned dining area has also been refurbished for the players where they will be served not only sportsmen-friendly dishes but also Gujarati delicacies.

“We have worked with the SAG and the Surat Municipal Corporation, just like the last time, which has made our jobs easier,” Sangtani added.

The first major sporting event at the stadium was the 3rd Asian Gymnastics Championship back in 2006 with a total of 105 gymnasts from 19 Asian countries competing for top honours.

*Refurbished and decked up, Surat’s PDDU stadium all set for National Games marquee table tennis action from September 20-

“No one had ever heard of such a huge sporting event in Gujarat before. When I started, there were several doubters, but we pulled off a great event that set the ball rolling for sporting events in the future,” said the tournament’s organising committee secretary Kaushik Bidiwala, adding that the then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the competition and the stadium was full on all days.

The organisers stand for a similar response from the residents of Surat and have also tried to provide access to young kids as part of their attempt to popularise the game.

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