Indian paddlers begin on winning note

New Delhi, July 20:
The Indian boys and girls in the junior and cadet sections romped to easy victories on the opening day of the South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships, here today.
The cadet and junior boys events, which are played in two stages, saw the Indians taking their respective top slots to move into Stage II, at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here.
The junior girls kept a clean slate winning both their matches against Nepal and Bangladesh, with an identical margin of 3-0.
They will now take on Sri Lanka, who too have four points from two wins, to decide the group topper.
Both India and Sri Lanka have a 3-0 win each against Nepal and with just three teams competing in the cadet girls section, India will have to beat Sri Lanka to complete a formality.
The results in the cadet and junior boys sections were no different. The Indians, part of group A, defeated Pakistan and Bhutan 3-0 to occupy the top position.
Similarly, in cadet section, India routed Bangladesh and Pakistan by the same margin.
Sri Lanka, who are proving to be the second best team from the region, as they beat smaller nations that are struggling to find their feet in the discipline.
Results:
Cadet Boys: Group A: India bt Bangladesh 3-0, India bt Pakistan 3-0; Bangladesh bt Pakistan 3-0; Group B: Sri Lanka bt Bhutan 3-0, Sri Lanka bt Nepal 3-0.
Cadet Girls: India bt Nepal 3-0, Sri Lanka bt Nepal 3-0.
Junior Boys: India bt Pakistan 3-0, Pakistan bt Bhutan 3-1, India bt Bhutan 3-0; Group B: Sri Lanka bt Nepal 3-0, Bangladesh bt Nepal 3-1, Sri Lanka bt Bangladesh 3-0.
Junior Girls: India bt Nepal 3-0, Sri Lanka bt Nepal 3-0, India bt Bangladesh 3-0, Sri Lanka bt Bangladesh 3-0. (PTI)