Muthumali Priyadarshini won the championship at the national women’s table tennis tournament recently. She dethroned Ishara Madurangi who held the title for several years.
The Youth Observer caught up with her to discuss her path to success in table tennis.
Q: What motivated you to take up this game?
A: Actually it was my mother. She encouraged me to take up table tennis when I was in grade one.
Q: Where did you study?
A: I am Ambalangoda Devanandian. After I entered school I was attracted to table tennis.
Q: Devananda College is the breeding ground for table tennis in Sri Lanka. I suppose that too inspired you?
A: Of course it did. Although I had stiff competition from the other players in school I am happy that I chose this game.
Q: So you began to play TT at the age of five?
A: Yes. I am 23 now and have been playing this game for 17 years continuously.
Q: What do you feel after you became national champ?
A: I am very happy. At first I never thought I would become national champion. I knew that I could perform well. I kept on developing my skills and became national champ. It is a milestone in my life.
Q: Could you tell me something about your personal life?
A: Well, I am single and have been attached to the Sri Lanka Navy for the past several years. Without their support I would not have developed my skills to this level. So, I must thank the Navy for this and also building up my morale. They provided all the facilities that I needed to play TT.
We begin practises early in the morning and in the evening too. The Navy looks into all my medical needs. They even provide paracetamol.
Q: How many days a week do you train?
A: I train six days per week. We maintain a strict schedule. We international TT matches and try to learn new tactics under the guidance of our coaches.
Q: You are the 2020 national table tennis champion. But the game was held this year?
A: Yes. The national table tennis championship was not conducted last year due to the Covid pandemic. So, it was held this month.
Q: How do you keep up your morale?
A: I think my morale is high because I love the game and the fact that the Navy has taken steps to strengthen our minds not to give up easily. It has also given me a clear view of the game.
Q: The coaches are the key characters in any type of game. Do you have any special coach who helped you to reach this standard?
A: One cannot reach national level in any game without coaches. Everyone needs good coaches and without their guidance we cannot go forward. When I was in school, my coaches Pubudu Kumara and Anura Lal helped me to learn the basics of the game.
I also thank TT coaches Lakshan Harshana and Hasitha Samaraweera. Samaraweera is my present coach. They all helped me to develop my skills.
Q: What are your achievements in the international arena?
A: I have won several bronze medals at Asian Junior TableTennis championships. In the Asian Senior Table Tennis championship in Qatar last year I improved my rankings in the Asian region and I am now among the top sixteen players.
Q: It is an admirable achievement. Don’t you think so?
A: Yes of course it is. This is the first time that a Sri Lankan woman player was ranked among the top 16 in the Asian region.
Q: What about Sri Lanka’s TT standard at the Asian junior level?
A: We have won several matches at junior level.
However, we could not maintain our skills at senior level in Asia. But I think this time we performed well and we should continue that success in the future.
Q: I think we won a medal in TT at the South Asian Games several years ago?
A: Yes, in 2016 we won the Gold medal in the team event.
That year Hansani Piyumila, Chamathsara Fernando, Pheshala Bandara and I represented the Sri Lanka women’s table tennis team.
Q: Can you recollect your achievements in table tennis?
A: As a Sri Lankan player I have a lot of memories with this game. In 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015 I won several medals at junior meets conducted in the Asian region.
I became national junior champion in 2016. I am happy that I have this far in my table tennis journey.
Q: The final question. How do you think we could reach international standards?
A: I believe if we get more international exposure we can improve our standard. If we can participate in about six international meets per year we can climb in the world ranking. Our young table tennis players are keen on improving standards.
We must give them more facilities and training. Then we can make good progress in this sport.
