Harmeet Desai Height, Age, Girlfriend, Wife, Family, Biography & More
Quick Info→
Age: 29 Years
Education: B.Com
Wife: Kritika Sinha
Bio/Wiki | |
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Profession | Table Tennis Player |
Famous for | Winning the Arjuna Award in 2019 |
Physical Stats & More | |
Height (approx.) | in centimeters– 167 cm in meters– 1.67 m in feet & inches– 5’ 6” |
Weight (approx.) | in kilograms– 63 kg in pounds– 138 lbs |
Eye Colour | Dark Brown |
Hair Colour | Black |
Table Tennis | |
Playing style | Right-handed, Shakehand grip |
Ranking |
International Ranking– 71 (as of August 2021) National Ranking– 4 (as of 2021) |
Medals |
International Medals Gold • Gold medal at the 2007 ITTF World Junior Circuit India Junior & Cadet Open (U-15 Team Championships) in Goa • Gold medal at the 2007 ITTF World Junior Circuit Canada Open (U-15 Team Championships) in Montreal • Gold medal at the 2007 ITTF World Junior Circuit Canada Open (U-15 Men’s Doubles) in Montreal • Gold medal at the 2009 South Asian Federation Games (U-15 Team Championships) in Jaipur • Gold medal at the 2010 South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships (U-18 Team Championships) in Dehradun, India • Gold medal at the 2010 South Asian Federation Games Championship (Junior Team Championships) in India • Gold medal at the 2010 South Asian Federation Games Championship (Junior Men’s Doubles) in India • Gold medal at the 2011 South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships (Team Championships) in India • Gold medal at the 2012 Fajr Cup (Men’s Singles) in Iran • Gold medal at the 2012 ITTF World Tour Brazil Open (Men’s Singles) • Gold medal at the 2015 Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships (Men’s Team Championships) in India • Gold medal at the 2019 Commonwealth Championships (Men’s Team Championships) in India • Gold medal at the 2021 WTT Contender Tunis (Men’s Doubles)
Silver • Silver medal at the 2019 South Asian Games (Men’s Singles) in Nepal Bronze • Bronze medal at the 2017 Challenge Zagreb (Croatia) Open (Men’s Singles) • Bronze medal at the 2018 Thailand Open (Men’s Doubles) • Bronze medal at the 2019 ITTF Challenge Indonesia Open (Men’s Doubles)
National Medals • Gold medal at the 2016 National Ranking Championship (Central Zone) (Men’s Singles) in Madhya Pradesh • Gold medal at 2019 All India Inter-Institutional Table Tennis Championships (Men’s Team Championship) in Ajmer Silver • Silver medal at the 2012 Senior National and Inter-State Table Tennis Championship (Mixed Doubles) in Ranchi Bronze |
Awards | • Khel Pratibha Award by the Government of India (2018)
• Arjuna Award by the Government of India (2019) |
Career Turning Point | Winning a gold medal in the team championships at the 2018 Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast, Australia |
Personal Life | |
Date of Birth | 19 July 1993 (Monday) |
Age (as of 2022) | 29 Years |
Birthplace | Surat, Gujarat, India |
Zodiac sign | Cancer |
Nationality | Indian |
Hometown | Olpad, Gujarat, India |
School | HMB Sardar High School Note According to Harmeet, he studied at nine different schools throughout his schooling. |
College/University | Rajasthan University |
Educational Qualification | B.Com [1]Gold Coast 2018 |
Hobbies | Reading and watching documentaries |
Relationships & More | |
Marital Status | Married |
Affairs/Girlfriends | Kritika Sinha (table tennis player) |
Marriage Date | 12 October 2021 |
Family | |
Wife/Spouse | Kritika Sinha (table tennis player) |
Parents |
Father– Rajul P Desai (table tennis player)
Mother– Archana Desai (teacher) |
Siblings | Brother– Hraday Desai (elder, table tennis player) |
Favourites | |
Sportsperson | Rafael Nadal |
Actor | Shah Rukh Khan |
Some Lesser Known Facts About Harmeet Desai
- Harmeet Desai is a senior-level table tennis player from India who was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2019. He once again came into the limelight after winning a gold medal along with Sathiyan Gnanasekaran in the final match of the table tennis mixed doubles event held at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
- According to Harmeet Singh, his journey as a table tennis player began when he was six years old.
- Harmeet Desai claimed that he had to frequently change schools as most of the schools in which he studied did not give any concession in attendance to him; therefore, it became very difficult for him to cope as he had to manage his table tennis career and attendance in school at the same time. He also claimed that because of his hectic schedule, he had to miss out on classes and could only appear for the exams in school. In an interview, he claimed,
I have studied in quite a number of schools because I changed a lot of schools; about nine schools actually. So it was pretty hard for me to achieve my goal like this. As I was playing tournaments I had to travel a lot. So back then, my school in the city did not try to understand. I had to miss out classes a lot. Though I was a good student as in good in the studies, I could only appear for the exams. Some of the schools never really supported me and that made me change schools again and again.”
Harmeet Desai being honoured in his school in 2001
- During the initial phase of his career, he was trained by his father. Harmeet in an interview also claimed that his father had to leave his job to help him train for his table tennis tournaments. He said,
My father taught me how to play table tennis. He taught me from the very basics of the game. He even left his job so that he could give me more time.”
Harmeet Desai playing table tennis with his father
- After his father, Harmeet Desai was trained by Peter Karlsson, a Swedish Olympic medallist and under his guidance, Harmeet Desai participated in and won several state, national, and international level tournaments.
- In 2001, Harmeet Desai joined the Petroleum Table Tennis Academy (PTTA) in Ajmer, where he was trained by an ace table tennis player from China named Yin Wei.
- In 2018, a letter was written by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Harmeet Desai in which he invited the table tennis player to join the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission initiative. He also asked him to encourage his followers to join the initiative as well.
The letter which was written by PM Modi to Harmeet Desai
- In 2019, Harmeet Desai participated in the Fit India run, supporting the government’s Fit India initiative.
Harmeet Desai receiving the certificate of appreciation for endorsing the Fit India initiative
- On 2 August 2022, Harmeet Desai won a gold medal in the mixed doubles event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG). There, he played the final match with Sathiyan Gnanasekaran against the Singaporean table tennis team, and the duo defeated them by a margin of 3-1.
Harmeet Desai with Sathiyan Gnanasekaran during their match which was held on 2 August 2022
- In an interview, Harmeet Desai claimed that had he not decided to pursue a career in table tennis; he would have made a career in the Indian Army as an officer. He said,
I think I would have joined the Indian army as an offcier as I had been very passionate about it since my childhood. I admire the men in uniform a lot. Since childhood, I have been very patriotic. I always wanted to do something for my nation. Though what I do is very trivial to what the army men do. So if it wasn’t a table tennis player I would love to opt for it.”
- After winning several medals for India, Harmeet Desai joined the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) through the sports quota.
References/Sources:[+]
↑1 | Gold Coast 2018 |
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