Somnath Ghosh is not only Sreeja Akula's coach. He is also the friend, philosopher, and guide of the country's number-one women's table tennis player from Hyderabad. 

After returning from Birmingham with the gold medal in the mixed doubles event in the Commonwealth Games, Sreeja admitted, that she becomes more energized by the presence of Somnath in any competition. Somnath shaped her career since childhood. 

Ghosh is also in Paris currently and expressed delight after watching his best student, following the footsteps of Manika Batra, reach the Pre-quarterfinal on her 26th birthday in her maiden campaign in the Olympics. 

“She failed to start as I expected. But later, she came back superbly. Zeng Jian was not an easy opposition. Previously, Sreeja could not defeat her. Zeng always exhibits highly controlled games. She does not show aggression generally, waits for the opposition's approach first," said Somnath while speaking over the phone from Paris on Wednesday after Sreeja's match.

Simultaneously, Somnath did not hesitate revealing, "We are thankful to Sathiyan. He gave Sreeja enough practice before the match and more significantly, Sathiyan played in a style almost similar to Zen in the practice session. It helped Sreeja to have good homework before the match against Zen." 

Sreeja will face Sun Yingsha, the world's number-one paddler in the Pre-quarterfinal. Ayhika Mukherjee drew the attention of the sports fraternity recently following a stunning victory against Sun Yingsha in the World Team championship. 

Commenting on Sreeja’s match against Yingsha, Ghosh stated, “I can only say that Sreeja will not have any psychological pressure while playing against the world's number one paddler. I have told her to enjoy the match and deliver her best."