Giant-killer Sharath beats World No. 22 in Singapore

Sharath Kamal

Veteran Indian table tennis player Sharath Kamal continued his giant-killing run in the Singapore Smash, defeating World No. 22 Omar Assar of Egypt to enter the quarter-finals on Thursday.

A day after he upset World No. 13 Darko Jorgic of Slovenia, Sharath recorded a comfortable 11-4, 11-8, 12-10 win over Assar in the round of 16 of the USD 1.5 million event.

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World No. 88 Sharath, who reached the main draw after winning the qualifiers, had it easy against the Egyptian in the first two games, but Assar put up a good resistance in the third. Sharath made a few mistakes midway, and his opponent cashed in to deuce. However, the Indian paddler grabbed the opportunity to win the last two crucial points and advance with another upset.

In the quarterfinals, the 10-time national champion will face Felix Lebrun of France for a place in the medal rounds.

"I'd say that this is all because of the way we had prepared for the World Championships in Korea [Busan]. Secondly, the confidence we've gained after the teams qualified for the Paris Olympics," said the veteran Indian paddler.

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