First Saraswat Brahmin Samaj state carrom tournament begins in Mumbai; Shankar Sawardekar advances

The first Saraswat Brahmin Samaj state carrom tournament began on Friday at the Shanti Niwas air-conditioned hall in Charni Road (East), Mumbai. The tournament is organised by Saraswat Brahmin Samaj, Mumbai, and is recognised by the Maharashtra Carrom Association and the Mumbai District Carrom Association.

It was inaugurated by cricket coach and Dronacharya Award winner Dinesh Lad. Jayant Salgaonkar, president of Saraswat Brahmin Samaj, Mumbai, was present. Other dignitaries at the inauguration included the organisation's vice-president Subhash Kamat, trustee Dr Nabar Prasad and Arun Kedar, honorary secretary of the Maharashtra Carrom Association.

Speaking on the history of carrom, Salgaonkar said the game originated in India. According to him, it has been played in India since the time of the Maharaja of Patiala. Lad said that had he not gone into cricket, he might have become a carrom player. The Maharashtra Carrom Association also felicitated chief guest Lad and Salgaonkar.

In the first round of the men's singles, Shankar Sawardekar of Mumbai beat Ganesh Patankar of Ratnagiri 25-15, 12-25, 25-14 in a three-set match and moved into the next round.

In other matches, Sanjay Mohite of Mumbai beat Shrikant Kamble of Palghar 25-0, 25-9. Vinayak Vakhankar of Thane defeated Manoj Darekar of Mumbai 25-4, 25-10. Abhijeet Tripankar of Pune won 25-0, 25-5 against Mumbai's Ramdas Sawardekar.

Abdul Rahman Hamid of Raigad beat Sudhir Jadhav 25-24, 18-15 to advance. Anil Tayshete of Sindhudurg beat Ashwinikumar Seth 25-10, 25-0. All these players won their matches and secured places in the next round.