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Affairs with Pakistan have also been a touchy topic for the Indians. I am sure the sentiment is mutual if not more sensitive in the other end. Blame it on nearly six decades of misunderstandings and opinions lost in translation or the ego clash that stems from being too identical in nature to the other party. We have been at loggerheads with each other since before the partition and continue to remain so long after everything has been said and done.

When you transcend the existing incongruity to a field like cricket where good sportsman ship is demanded of each and every person irrespective of their gender or nationality, it morphs in to a highly saturated rivalry threatening to explode any second. This is the very reason why any match between India Cricket team and Pakistan cricket team is a solid entertainer. The Indian crickets are a diplomatic lot. When it comes to Pakistani cricket team the word ‘Tact’ could very well be their middle name. It’s very rare that one of them gets caught up in a huff of any sort. Last year there was that incident with Ishant Sharma and another player of the Pakistan team. But words were exchanged; hands were shook and before you know it they were behaving as a couple of long lost pals.

Then there was this incident involving a micro blogging site where Suresh Raina ‘mis-tweeted’. Social networking sites and micro blogging forums such as Facebook and twitter have been the living end of many a celebrity. Sports stars are not exactly shy of the tweeting revolution that has gripped the whole wide world. Once you put it out there, there isn’t much you can do to retract before it goes viral. So when Raina passed an inappropriate comment against the Pakistani team, the internet vultures were quick to latch on to the statement and circulate it to practically everyone, even though Raina had deleted the tweet almost immediately.

The fact that Raina decided to blame the scandalous tweet on a ‘make- believe’ nephew only made the matters even worse. He said that his nephew had got hold of his smart phone and had his way with it. Not only did the people not buy this story, but it also led to a surge of internet humor and memes with Raina smack in the middle. This has definitely been a red blot on Suresh Raina profile.

India is not a country which is open to new things. India is shy and conservative. India is content with what it already has. “If it worked for us a century back, it is will work even now” this is the shared mentality of a very narrow minded nation who on the other hand holds true to its traditional values beautifully. This is the reason why anything out of the ordinary is met with the rolling of an eye. But unfortunately, how much ever we are proud of good thing, a change would always be better as it will help us develop further. So we have our staples. We have our favored Prime ministers; our favored actors – Amitabh Bachchan, Rajanikanth, Mohanlal and Mammootty who are past their prime but still worshipped in certain places; our favored mode of transport, however outdated that might be( yes I am talking about cycle rickshaws); our favored traditional attire and of course our favored sport- Cricket.

I wait for the day when another sport would attain the level of popularity that cricket holds. Cricket has reigned supreme for a ‘century’ (pun intended) now and will continue to do so for another hundred years or so by the looks of it. With all the hoopla associated with cricket and its celebrity cricket players, what are the odds that another sport might measure up? Even the national sport- hockey doesn’t have a chance, then how does one expect an indoor game like Table Tennis to compete with the big boys. Most of the people in India know Table Tennis by another name- Ping Pong. To them it is a small level indoor game, played just for the fun of it in gyms and club houses. Little do they know that the game of table tennis requires a higher level of dexterity, agility, speed and the capability to think on your feet.

India’s number one table tennis player to date is Soumyajit Ghosh who on January 12, 2013 became the youngest national champion after winning the the Indian National Table Tennis championship. He defeated Achanta Sharath Kamal, a six time champion, in the summit clash of the 74th National Table Tennis Championships. He beat the very best to acquire the number one rank in India and the 68th in Asia along with the Maharaja Pitampura Cup.

Soumyajit Ghosh profile has come a long way since his debut at the Olympics.