Off the field issues affect Indian paddler Manush Shah’s mental health after getting snubbed from the Commonwealth Games

There is a lot of talk around Indian table tennis of late as Indian paddler Manush Shah opens up on how his recent struggles has affected him mentally. Manush was recently snubbed from  the upcoming  Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. He is also one of the four paddlers who have taken this matter to Delhi High Court questioning the selection process in Indian table tennis.

Another paddler Diya Chitale who is among the four have received a petition and has been included in the indian table tennis team for the Commonwealth Games whereas Manush Shah and others continue to wait for more clarity. Manush shared how he had had first hearing on the same day as his qualification match and he kept on thinking about the hearing and he crashed out of the singles and doubles.

“It definitely hurts. To be honest I was not expecting this and hence it has affected me even more mentally. Last week I had my first hearing and I was playing in Croatia on the same day. But the only thing going on in my mind was what would happen in the court and eventually, I crashed in qualification rounds itself in both singles and doubles,” he told The Bridge.

The Indian paddler then points out how he does not want to blame external factors for his performances but this time it is a big factor as his mind is always thinking about it and it is a major distraction. “I do not like to blame my performances on external factors, but this was a big distraction coming into the tournament. When it is such a big thing, it always plays on the back of your mind,” he added.

The 21-year-old youngster who hails from Gujarat holds the second rank among the Indian paddlers in terms of selection criteria but despite that he was named as a reserve player for the Commonwealth Games scheduled next month in Birmingham. The Indian table tennis team includes paddlers like Achanta Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Harmeet Desai and Sanil Shetty.

Manush Shah does not want anyone to be left out or say that this player does not deserve their position in this team. His sole point is that he fulfills the criteria and is ranked second after Sharath Kamal but then why is he omitted from the final squad. “The only focus I have is on my position. I would not ever want any player to go out of the team or say this player does not deserve it. My entire point is the fact that as per the selection criteria of 50% national rankings and 30% world rankings, I am the second-best-ranked player after Achanta Sharath Kamal. Being second, I should not be out of the team,” the youngster explained.

The young paddler from Gujarat wants more transparency in these selection process and blames the Court of Administrators for this entire fiasco. He feels that selection or dropping any player should be done with proper logic and not like it is done to select the Indian table tennis team for the Commonwealth Games.