Indian · Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India · Born 12 July 1982Indian table tennis player and India's most decorated Commonwealth Games athlete, who competed at a record five Olympics and won India's highest sporting honor across a two-decade career.
Achanta Sharath Kamal was born on 12 July 1982 in Madras (now Chennai), India, into a table tennis family - his father Srinivasa Rao and uncle Muralidhar Rao were both state-level players and coaches who introduced him to the sport at age four. He won his first Indian national title in 2003 - the first of a record ten national championships - and made his Olympic debut the following year at the 2004 Athens Games. Sharath Kamal's international breakthrough came at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, where he won gold in men's singles by defeating Australia's William Henzell, becoming the first Indian to win a table tennis gold medal at the Games, and also won team gold. He became the first Indian to win an ITTF Pro Tour title at the 2010 Egypt Open, and added doubles and team golds at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi with partner Subhajit Saha. Sharath Kamal's career peaked in his late thirties and early forties: at the 2018 Commonwealth Games he won a medal in every event he entered (gold, silver, two bronzes), and at Birmingham 2022, aged 40, he won three golds and a silver, becoming the first player to win the men's singles title twice at the Games. That year he was awarded India's highest sporting honor, the Khel Ratna. He competed at a record five Olympics, from Athens 2004 to Paris 2024, where he was chosen as India's flagbearer alongside PV Sindhu at the opening ceremony - the first table tennis player to receive the honor. Sharath Kamal retired in March 2025 at the WTT Star Contender in his hometown of Chennai, finishing with 13 Commonwealth Games medals (seven gold), the most by any male player in the tournament's history, and is widely credited with transforming Indian table tennis from an obscure discipline into one producing world-class competitors.
Becoming India's most decorated table tennis player and Commonwealth Games athlete, competing at a record five Olympics across a two-decade career
How They Played
Aggressive, attacking shakehand player known for powerful forehand topspin and remarkable mental resilience, capable of sustaining elite performance into his forties
Lasting Impact
Widely regarded as the figure who transformed Indian table tennis from a marginal sport into a globally competitive discipline, whose longevity and Commonwealth Games dominance inspired a generation of Indian players including Manika Batra and Sathiyan Gnanasekaran
Career Honours
- Record 13 Commonwealth Games medals (7 gold) - most by any male player
- Record 10x Indian National Champion
- Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award (2022) - India's highest sporting honor
- Record 5x Olympian (2004-2024)
Indian Athletes