Young Achiever: Divyanshi Bhowmick
Back in Mumbai from the 29th Asian Youth Table Tennis Championships — which concluded in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) on July 1 — Divyanshi Bhowmick (14) has returned with the U-15 girls singles title, ending a severe Indian table tennis drought. The first Indian to win this title in 36 years, Divyanshi has qualified for the World Youth Table Tennis Championships scheduled to be held in Romania this month (November).
In a fiercely contested final against China’s Zhu Qihui, Divyanshi emerged victorious with a 13-11, 11-8, 8-11, 12-10, 9-11, 11-8 scoreline showcasing her calm temperament and technical finesse. Prior to the final, she battled through a challenging seven-game semi-final against China’s Liu Ziling, winning 4-3 in a nail-biting encounter. This is a significant achievement considering that TT is China’s national sport.
Born in Kolkata and raised in Mumbai by a sports loving family (Divyanshi’s father Rahul Bhowmick and sister Hitangshi play uncompetitively), Divyanshi, a class X student of the CBSE-affiliated Ryan International School, Kandivali, started learning this fast-paced game at age eight in school. When the Covid-19 pandemic shut down all schools countrywide for eight months, Divyanshi’s father installed a TT table at home, enabling her to practise with her sister under his mentorship.
Soon after the end of the pandemic while she turned ten, Divyanshi started playing state-level tournaments under the mentorship of Anshuman Roy, chief coach of the SKIES International Table Tennis Academy, Bengaluru, for which she has to often travel to Bengaluru. Since then she has won 14 World Table Tennis golds, one Asian Championship gold, one World Championship silver and ten national golds. More important, this rising TT star is being sponsored by Dani Sports Foundation, Gail Foundation and Khelo India. “I’m looking forward to the World Youth Championship in November and hope to hear the national anthem being played,” says Divyanshi.
To ensure that denouement, this young teen is training for six-eight hours daily at the Khar Gymkhana under coach Sachin Shetty. “Winning the under-15 girls championship in Tashkent was a huge morale booster. I’m determined to improve on that performance,” says this gritty teen.
God speed!
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