Colombo, July 08 (Daily Mirror) - Adam Bobrow, the American commentator and YouTuber known as "The Voice of Table Tennis," recently visited Sri Lanka to take on 15 of the country's best players in a single sitting, filmed at the High Performance Table Tennis Academy.
All matches were played race to 11 with no deuce, just golden points to settle close games. One of the standout moments came against Taavi Samaraweera, the U-11 world number one. Adam found himself down 4-10 before fighting back to win, in what he later called one of the closest calls of the day. His match against Dr Gerard Nimal Lucas was just as memorable, with the 84-year-old's unusual playing style giving Adam plenty of trouble despite the decades of age difference between them.
- Taven Samaraweera, 8 years old, U-11 national rankings - Sahiru Hendahewa, 15 years old, U-15 and U-17 novice champion - Sanuja Ratiyala, 16 years old, finalist at the 2024 National Championships - Tharuka Diwakara, 27 years old, North Central Province champion - Vidath Marasinghe - Mindu Hansana, 23 years old, three-time North Central Province champion - Rajamokan Thusyanthan, 25 years old, best player in the Jaffna district, who beat Adam - Dr Gerard Nimal Lucas, holder of 100 international medals and decades of experience representing Sri Lanka - Muthuli Sahanya, 14 years old, national player and South Asian medalist, who beat Adam - Taavi Samaraweera, ranked U-11 world number one - Matheesha Wickramanayake, national player - Dewmeth Weerasena, national player - Helitha Handewitharana, South Asian U-15 gold medalist in 2016 and national player, who beat Adam - Thisas Ranchagoda, two time national men's doubles champion, who beat Adam - Vinuka Gunawardena, South Asian U-19 gold medalist in 2024, who beat Adam - Nimesh Ranchagoda, national champion, who beat Adam
The event also served as a reminder of how much depth there is in Sri Lankan table tennis outside the national team's usual faces, from province level champions to South Asian medalists still in their teens. Several of the players who beat Adam were under 20, a detail that stood out to him enough to mention more than once during the session.
Adam later said he was struck by the talent and warmth he found in Sri Lanka, staying back after the matches to play with anyone in the crowd who wanted a game. He signed off with a promise to return.
The full video is available on Adam Bobrow's YouTube channel.
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