THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is a second coming of sorts for M Harikrishnan. To be 22, and not have a national ranking is not the ideal position for a talented player to be in. But when the player happens to be a former trainee at the nation’s premier table tennis academy and having been ranked in the top eight as a sub-junior, there are reasons to be optimistic.
Bogged down by fitness issues and the expenses involved in travelling around the domestic circuit since his return to Thiruvananthapuram five years ago, Harikrishnan is now determined to catch up on lost ground. Making steady progress after shifting base to the Regional Sports Centre in Kochi over a year ago, he has reinvented himself to become the state’s best hope among men. Confidence in his own abilities is back and there is a new-found spring in his step during training, avers coach Rani Navaz.
Harikrishnan himself has set the bar high. He wants to play for India, no less.
“I want to get into the Indian team in the next two or three years,” he told City Express.
“I will be at my peak in the coming four years, and hence, I will give my 100 percent to become the best player that I can be.”
Ushered into the world of table tennis aged 10 by his father Mohan Kumar at the NSS table tennis coaching centre under former state player K Satheesh, Harikrishnan was picked up by the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board Table Tennis Academy in Ajmer the following year, an achievement in itself. During the five years there, his was a prominent name in the national circuit, being part of medal-winning PSPB Academy teams in the cadets, sub-junior and junior categories from 2002 to 2007. That was when an attack of jaundice forced him to come back to Kerala.
“After coming back to Thiruvananthapuram, I lost out on the opportunity to rub shoulders with the best players in the country. The intensity was very low while training and most of the players and coaches tended to be satisfied with achievements at the state level. There just wasn’t enough ambition to make it big at the national level or beyond. That’s the reason I moved to Kochi, where the atmosphere is totally different. I have been fortunate that there is a group of players, including Rahul Binu Mathew and Vysakh Ravi, who work very hard and are ambitious of doing well at the national level. That has rubbed off on my game as well, helping me to improve considerably,” he said, outlining the huge gap between where he was as a sub-junior and where he is as a senior.
Another factor that limited his exposure to the national scene was the huge expenses involved in participating in major tournaments.
“It costs around Rs 15,000 for a week if you want to play in a top ranking tournament in one of the metro cities in the country,” he points out.
But then the guidance he has received at RSC, from the likes of Shantanu Roy and former international Rajesh R apart from Rani Navaz, has given a fresh impetus to his dreams. He also spends weekends under Bobby Joseph at the Alappuzha YMCA Table Tennis Academy. “I have been more focused and I’m more determined than ever to succeed. I want to do it for my parents, who have been such a great source of strength for me. Sometimes, I feel my father is more passionate about me making it to the national team. This year itself, he has spent around `40,000 for buying me rubbers alone,” says Harikrishnan.
Of late, his focus has been on improving his service and reception, apart from adding power to his back-hand shots.
“My coaches have helped achieve better feel and spin when I play strokes. My preparation and match-composure have also improved. I used to lose focus earlier, but now I have become a more thinking player,” stressed Harikrishnan.