Seasoned paddler Harmeet Desai on Saturday progressed to the Round of 64 of the table tennis men's singles competition at the Paris Olympics after a dominating victory in his maiden Olympic match. (Full Olympics Coverage | More Sports News)
Desai defeated Jordan's Zaid Abo Yaman in straight sets to earn an easy victory in the preliminary round. Desai won 11-7 11-9 11-5 11-5 to kick off his Paris Olympic campaign on a high.
Jordan's Abo Yaman was no match for the seasoned Indian paddler who wrapped up the proceedings in just 30 minutes.
Desai will now face Felix Lebrun of France at the South Paris Arena in the round of 64 on Sunday.
The 31-year-old from Surat is participating in his first Olympic Games. Desai though has been part of the side that clinched the team gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2018 and 2022.
Against his 538th ranked Jordanian opponent, the Indian quickly settled into a nice rhythm and, on most occasions, came out on top in the long rallies.
After a strong start to the match, Desai was challenged in the second set by his Jordan opponent. However, Desai managed to win the second set too and once the match progressed after that, the Indian left nothing to chance.
An established name in the Indian TT circuit, Harmeet has been toiling for many years in his quest to compete at the Olympics, having played in all other top global competitions.
In Paris, he is competing as one of the two men's singles players from India alongside veteran Achanta Sharath Kamal.
Harmeet came into the Olympics after playing in three preparatory tournaments and undergoing personal training in Germany.
(With PTI Inputs)
