At 38, paddler Mouma Das still packs a punch

Surat: At 38, Mouma Das insists that she doesn’t have any targets to pursue or specific ambitions to fulfil but wants to enjoy playing the sport she loves the most. But even if the five-time national champion is only playing table tennis for enjoyment, she can teach youngsters a few lessons in how to win matches.

Mouma did just that when she saved two match points before defeating 19-year-old Diya Chitale of Maharashtra in five sets to set up West Bengal’s victory in the table tennis women’s team final at the 36th National Games here on Wednesday.

It was a vital win in the third singles encounter of the title clash as both teams were tied at 1-1.

“Frankly, I am simply enjoying playing again and hence can play freely without pressure. I just focused on keeping the ball on the table and she was under pressure as she was expected to win,” said Mouma, who is playing her third tournament since returning to competition after a maternity break. “It’s a clean slate for me and I am starting afresh with nothing to lose,” she quipped.

In fact, she reached the final of the very first tournament – the Senior Nationals in Meghalaya earlier this year – without much expectations as she hadn’t trained enough.

“Before the Nationals I played just one session in the morning or evening because it is very difficult to play continuously. I am not so fit physically anymore, so I have to prepare and put in more effort as compared to my young teammates,” explained the paddler who was part of the 2018 Commonwealth Games gold winning Indian women’s team and had also reached the 2017 world championships quarters with Manika Batra in women’s doubles.

Yet, despite her suspect fitness levels, Mouma was involved in two five-setters in the semi-finals and finals at the PDDU Indoor Stadium on Wednesday and was more aggressive than her younger opponents in the decider.