Table tennis needs a 'league' to flourish in India, according to coach Peter Engel

Peter Engel, coach of the Indian table tennis team

Peter Engel, coach of the Indian table tennis team, has suggested that a national league should be introduced into the sport for the development of the game and its players.

With many creative leagues being utilised across various sports in the country, the German has proposed the idea of a year long league that would enhance the players’ talents and make them more competitive in the process.

Engel, who was in Patiala, spoke to TOI as he was working with the players who were going through the preparatory camp for the World Championship.

“India has a large number of paddlers. The country has great talent pool but there aren’t enough tournaments for them to grow. They play only about six to seven tournaments a year, unlike their European counterparts who play in leagues almost every weekend. We need to look at developing a year-long league for better utilization of available talent,” said Engel.

“We would have ideally liked the team to prepare by playing against foreign players rather than against each other. That would have taken the training to a new level,” he added.

Engel also mentioned how the team has been developing well with the facilities at their disposal and stressed that their primary target was to finish first in both the men’s and women’s divisions in their respective groups.

The World championship in scheduled to commence in Tokyo on April 28 in which both the men’s and women’s teams will be competing in the second division.

The team will be departing for Tokyo on April 26.