Lloyd is India’s top-ranked player in para table tennis with double nat’l triumph

Panaji: In 2016, when Lloyd Fernandes met with a motorbike accident in the city and was bedridden for ten months, his world was crumbling right in front of his eyes.
Every time he tried to sit up, his blood pressure simply dropped, and he fainted.
It was a long battle, but it was table tennis that provided him some comfort. It was a sport that he played during his school and higher-secondary school days, even being part of the tournament-winning squad at Dhempe HSS, Miramar.
"Table tennis provides a sense of joy," Lloyd had told TOI in a previous interview at his Taleigao residence. "It makes me feel relaxed. Continuous physiotherapy (to strengthen the muscles) is boring. This sport provides a welcome break."
Table tennis has now given Lloyd a new identity, a new mission, one that can take him far.
Lloyd has made history by clinching two consecutive gold medals at the Para Table Tennis National Ranking Championship and the Para Senior Table Tennis National Championship. The championships were held at the Sama Indoor Sports Complex in Vadodara, Gujarat.
Competing in the men’s Class-2 category, Lloyd displayed outstanding skill and determination to defeat Avinash Gopinathan (Tamil Nadu) 11-6, 13-15, 11-8, 16-14 and in the Senior National Championship final, he edged out Avinash once again in a thrilling 11-8, 8-11, 7-11, 11-6, 11-9 five-setter.
The back-to-back victories have now propelled Lloyd to the No. 1 ranking in India in the men’s Class-2 category, a significant achievement for Goan para-sports.
Goa’s Chetan Salgaonkar also competed in the championships but lost out in the quarterfinals of the Senior National Championship. He lost closely-fought clash against Ravinder Yadav (Haryana) 8-11, 11-7, 7-11, 11-8, 7-11.
Chetan currently holds the No. 5 rank in India in the men’s Class-9 category.
The tournaments were organised by the Table Tennis Association of Baroda under the aegis of the Gujarat State Table Tennis Association and the Table Tennis Federation of India. The events brought together top para-athletes from across the country.