Ishara, Chalitha and Udaya clinch a triple crown each

S M Jiffrey Abdeen - Kandy Sports Corr. at Ganegoda

Ishara Madurangi (Ladies Open) K S T Chalitha (Men’s open singles) and Vidyartha College Schoolboy 15-year-old Udaya Ranasinghe won a triple crown each at the Open All Island Ranking Table Tennis Championship 2012 organized by the Kandy District Table Tennis Association (KDTTA) in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Table Tennis Association and worked off at the Jagath Rajapakse International Table Tennis Stadium at Ganegoda, off Peradeniya.

A notable feature of the championship was that almost all the paddlers including Sri Lanka’s women’s captain and No. 1 seeded Ishara Madurangi and Sri Lanka’s Men’s captain and No. 1 ranked Rohan Sirisena lost in some stage of the tournament. Both are defending national champions.

The giant killers of the championship were former National Champion K S T Chalitha of Seylan Bank and Vidyartha College schoolboy Udaya Ranasinghe who fought their way into the Men’s Open Singles Finals only to battle out an excruciating one which stretched into seven sets and Chalitha was able to get the better of a tired Udaya Ranasinghe who played in his fourth final of the day. In the league stages all the top players had to play seven matches and Rohan Sirisena won, Udaya Ranasinghe and Chalitha won five matches each.

Udaya Ranasinghe stunned Rohan Sirisena and the ultimate champion K S T Chalitha by defeating them in the league stages and his two defeats were in the hands of Buddhika Walagampola and Nirmala Jayasinghe.

K S T Chalitha lost to Nirmala Jayasinghe and Udaya Ranasinghe in the league stages. In fact he lost to Udaya Ranasinghe in three straight sets. Rohan Sirisena in turn lost to Udaya Ranasinghe and Chalitha.

Since Chalitha and Udaya Ranasinghe had beaten the top favourites and though having an equal number of wins qualified for the men’s finals. The ranking at that stage read Udaya Ranasinghe leading, second Chalitha and third Rohan Sirisena.

The finals was hotly contested Udaya Ranasinghe led 3-1 at the end of the fourth set. But Chalitha fought back against a tired little schoolboy who lost the next three sets but went down gallantly.

Both paddlers displaced back and forehand placements and spiced it with the top spin and often ending with smashes. Udaya Ranasinghe would have put up a better displaying if not for the fact that he figured in four finals.

The star of the meet was no doubt Udaya Ranasinghe who first won the Boys Under 15 title by defeating Supun Warusawitharne of Dharmasoka College in three straight sets.

His second title was in the Boys under 18 in which he beat Bandula Warusawitharne of Dharmasoka College also in three straight sets. His third title was in the Men’s Open Doubles partnered by Nirmala Jayasinghe of MAS Holdings beat Rohana Sirisena and Milinda Lakshitha of the Sri Lanka Air Force 3-2.

This championship was a rare occasion in which the defending national champion Rohan Sirisena went home without a title.

The Ladies National Champion Ishara Madurangi of Sri Lanka Air Force despite a hicup in the league stage of the championship won the Ladies Open Singles title defeating schoolgirl Nuwani Navodhya of Dharmasoka College in the finals.

Navodhya won the first set but Ishara Madurangi using the smash as her powerful weapon won the next two sets. Little Navodhya displayed guts in winning the fourth and sixth sets but Ishara Madurangi clinched the issue by winning the final set with ease winning by whisker 4-3.

Nuwani Navodhya also won a double by winning the Girls under 18 title beating Ruwini Kannangara in three straight sets. Next she won the Open Mixed Doubles partners by schoolmate Pubudu Chanaka beating Air Force duo of Shanika Silva and Milinda Lakshitha 3-2. This brought her the award the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament in the category for ladies.

The results of finals:

Boys Under 10 Singles: P S D Tennakoon (Dharmaraja College) beat Abdullah Manzil (Trinity College) 11/7, 9/11, 8/11, 11/9, 12/10.

Girls Under 10 Singles: Dilmi Colabage (Prajapathi Gothami BV, Ambalangoda) beat Ashika Sathsarani (Dharmasoka College, Ambalangoda) 6/11, 11/5, 11/8, 11/6.

Boys Under 12 Singles: Chathura Gunasekera (Sussex International School, Kandy) beat Dishanka Tennakoon (Dharmaraja College) 11/7, 11/5, 11/6.

Girls Under 12 Singles: Hansani Piumali (Anula Vidyalaya Nugegoda) beat Natasha Sandavini (Maliyadeva Girls College, Kurunegala) 9/11, 11/7, 6/11, 11/6, 11/5.

Boys Under 15 Singles: Udaya Ranasinghe (Vidyartha College, Kandy) beat Supun Warusawitharne (Dharmasoka College) 11/6, 11/2, 11/4.

Girls Under 15 Singles: Pavani Sirisena (Maliyadeva Girls College, Kurunegala) beat Muthumali Priyadharshani (Devananda College, Ambalangoda) 8/11, 11/5, 11/8, 6/11, 11/6.

Boys Under 18 Singles: Udaya Ranasinghe (Vidyartha College) beat Bandula Warusawitharne (Dharmasoka College) 11/6, 11/4, 11/9.

Girls Under 18 Singles: Nuwani Navodhya (Dharmasoka College) beat Ruwini Kannangara (Musaeus College, Colombo) 13/11, 11/1, 11/4.

Men’s Open Doubles: Nirmala Jayasinghe (MAS Holdings) and Udaya Ranasinghe (Vidyartha College) beat Rohan Sirisena and Milinda Lakshitha (Sri Lanka Air Force) 13/11, 5/11, 8/11, 11/9, 11/12.

Ladies Open Doubles: Ishara Madurangi and Maulee Peiris (Sri Lanka Air Force) beat Shanika Silva and Nirmani Silva (Sri Lanka Air Force).

Open Mixed Doubles: Nuwani Navodhya and Pubudu Chanaka (Dharmasoka College) beat Shanika Silva and Milinda Lakshitha (Sri Lanka Air Force) 3/11, 11/6, 11/6, 9/11, 11/7.