For Somnath Ghosh, who moulded the raw talent of young Akula Sreeja and turned her into a champion performer, it will be a “different and challenging” role when he dons the coach’s mantle for defending champion Chennai Lions in the Ultimate Table Tennis League, to be held from July 13 to 30 in Pune.
For the record, Hyderabad-based Somnath will join German coach Jorg Bitzigeio, who trained the USA and German teams, as the Lions try to defend the title.
“I am making my debut in UTT this year and every effort is being made to retain the title,” he said in a chat with The Hindu.
Somnath trains international players like Sreeja, S.F.R. Snehit, and B. Varun Shanker at Somnath Ghosh UTT Table Tennis Academy (KPHB) here.
“I am really excited at the huge opportunity and have been waiting for a long time for this kind of assignment,” Somnath said. “This year’s format is also very different, so we will plan our strategies along with team owners and other members after the player draft,” he said.
“Yes, being defending champions, expectations will be very high on Chennai Lions. But, we are ready for any kind of challenge and will give our cent percent to defend the title,” Somnath said. “There is no pressure as such, but just hoping for the best result as the team is capable of retaining the championship,” he said.
“Obviously, I am grateful to the franchise for giving me this kind of a challenge and hope to live up to their expectations,” the coach said. “The target is to win again, but I feel we should take it match by match, slow and steady approach to achieve the objective,” he said.
“It will be a great experience to work with someone like Bitzigeio,” Somnath said.
