Goa, December 13: Preyesh Raj Suresh, who suffered the Cadet Boys singles title loss in the last edition, would be itching to make amends when the 11Sports 79th Cadet and Sub-Junior National Table Tennis Championships which begin at the SP Mukherjee Indoor Stadium here from tomorrow.

The boy from Tamil Nadu had done everything right until Siliguri, winning all five zonal titles and was the hot favourite to win his first national crown. But his dream came crashing down as he was sent packing in the semi-final stages. One year down the line, Preyesh is staring at a similar situation, having repeated his performance in national ranking events this season in what was another spectacular season for the Tamil Nadu left-hander.

Naturally, this year he would not like to let the trophy go off his hands. But, in addition, he would love see his state retaining the team trophy as it did the last year. Indeed, Preyesh will be the key factor in Tamil Nadu’s fortunes while Karnataka, who depend on Sujan Bharadwaj to help them go a step ahead from the silver-medal performance last year, while hosts Goa and Uttar Pradesh will try and topple both squads to etch their names on the record books.

As many as 30 states have sent their entries in this section while there are just two less in the Cadet Girls team events with Delhi leading charge and West Bengal in hot pursuit despite 28 squads in fray. The two losing semi-finalists Maharashtra and Karnataka, ambitious to be the champions, will have to do more than merely aspiring as both Delhi and West Bengal look to be the teams to beat in this category.

State quads have been divided into eight groups of three and four, essentially the top two groups in Cadet Boys and four in Cadet Girls getting the benefit of being clubbed with just three teams in their groups.

In Sub-Junior Boys, the close call and contest are likely to be between Delhi and Gujarat as in the previous edition with Maharashtra and West Bengal boys trying to make a breach. With a new coach in place, it could be a different story for the PSPB boys.

Based on last year’s presentation, the team draw in Sub-Junior Boys give an impression that even as Delhi fight for its supremacy, the battle in Sub-Junior Girls’ section could be between West Bengal and Delhi. But these group divisions provide only a glimpse of what to expect and not necessarily how a team would eventually end up in order of merit.

With some boys and girls that competed in the last nationals having moved to higher categories, there is always scope for others to occupy the places vacates and justify their selection. That is a possibility which Cadets offer as the field is wide open for worthy contenders to exploit.

But the nationals can be a different kettle of fish as it proved last year. In fact, most teams and players that come here can swing the balance in a span of just one game. The nationals are known to throw up surprises and opportunities for players and teams to take centre-stage. It is up to players to turn it around in their favour.

According to Competition Manager Ganeshan Neelakanta Iyer, Stag/GKI tables and balls will be used for the six-day event with Joseph Chacko as referee for the first time with the nominated referee C.L. Thade pulling out on medical grounds. Chacko will get his opportunity to shine under guidance and help from two veterans—A.S. Kler and T. G. Upadhya—besides the wholehearted support of 55 Blue Badge, international and national umpires. 

With 120 teams and more than 1,000 entries in singles and doubles events, it will be a big festival before the actual festival season begins with Christmas and New Year beckoning. It is not an easy task to handle more 1,500 people for seven days with three-course meals, but the Goa Table Tennis Association has done a fantastic job under the leadership of Vero Nunes.