Indore, May 25: The just-concluded Central Zone Championships in Youth Girls Under-11, 13, and 15 would have not only served the paddlers with worthy time at the tables but also come in handy during the 83rd Cadet & Sub-Junior Nationals that begin with the girls’ singles at the Abhay Prashal, from tomorrow.

The paddlers did their job with utmost diligence during the zonal events, and one can expect them to give off their best in the Nationals. After all, only a select few make it to the squad from among the hundreds from each state. With this in mind, the players representing their states will go all out to make a mark for themselves as these Nationals provide the stepping stone to shape one’s career in the sport. It also means some serious business for the players.

Incidentally, this will be the first Nationals for the Under-11 girls and present them an opportunity to showcase their talent that, if nurtured and polished, could be the future of Indian table tennis. Understandably, 108 girls have entered this category from 34 states and are split into 32 groups.

Among the 192 entries in Under-13 Girls, eight of the top-ranked will get the seeding while the rest, divided into 64 groups, will play the group qualifiers. In the Under-15 Girls, the number has swelled to 203. Leaving aside the top eight paddlers, everybody else plays the group qualifications.

For the next four days, the girls will see some hectic action to ascend the podium and grab the chance that has come their way. Going by the lists of players in each of these sections with some hints thrown during the Central Zone championships, the medal rounds are at a striking distance for paddlers from Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Maharashtra, and Delhi.

Among the previous champions, Preyesh Raj Suresh from Tamil Nadu has graduated to the Junior section, throwing the field open for others in the Sub-Junior Boys. But Nikhil Menon, in the Cadet Boys, will throw his hat in the ring for a consecutive title yet again. Both Sayali Wani of Maharashtra and  M. Hansini will try to make amends for what they missed out on in the Sub-Junior and Cadet Girls sections during the Central Zone events. In any case, the boys don’t show up until the girls finish their engagements.

According to N. Ganeshan, the competition manager, the second stage of the draw will not be before Thursday afternoon as he would first concentrate on finishing the qualifications events across the three categories. For the Nationals, he said, the technical officials have been drawn from different states, as is usually done. Twenty-one STAG tables will be in use during the Nationals, he added.