Junior national table tennis player Jamal Nicholas is one of those extraordinary players who could frustrate you as one of his fans and a fan of the sport.
Obviously, he has all the right ingredients to go a mightily long way but he needs to be properly guided.
Like so many of the talented junior players around, he can transcend boundaries but there must be a commitment on his part to grind daily to work on his fitness, sharpen his racquet skills and strengthen his mental fortitude.
He also entertains and his effervescent presence is a rare quality in junior athletes.
Nicholas, who is now 17-years-old, picked up the sport seven years ago and managed to collect three national caps.
During those outings, the former Chase Academy Student, captured one team’s bronze medal in the 2017 Junior Caribbean championships in Guyana and a silver medal the same year along with his partner Terrence Rauch in the boys 15 years and under doubles category.
He last represented Guyana in 2019. His success on the local front has been off and on. He has dominated tournaments at times only to not do so well on other occasions.
However, in December 2019, he won gold in the U2050 category at the Flushing TT Centre November Open and the Westchester Open tournaments in the United States.
Those achievements suggest that his talent shouldn’t be taken for granted and though he hasn’t won a local title since 2018 in the Handicap Forbes Burnham Memorial tournament, Nicholas, when unsound can ramp with the best in his division.
“I’m not satisfied,” the Malteenos Sports Club (MSC) player told Stabroek Sport of the achievements to date.
“I could do better but I have this mental block that’s preventing me from playing to my full abilities locally and internationally as well… I’m satisfied with my skills because of the way I compete with top-class players with a higher ranking than mine,” Nicholas revealed.
His ultimate table tennis goals are to go pro and compete with the best in the world. And to achieve those goals, he plans to really put in the required work.
“To achieve those goals, I plan on working hard on my game to develop an all-round game of defence and attack also to improve my fitness and mental health.”
Nicholas also revealed that the opportunity of attending college in the United States is on his radar. He is currently working out those details and once ironed out, he will still be interested in representing Guyana.
“…It will always be an honour to represent my beautiful country so yes, I would love to represent Guyana after migrating.
“I plan to stay in touch with the President of GTTA [Godfrey Munroe] and post videos of me training to him so he can see my performance and improvement so he wouldn’t have any doubts on selecting me to represent Guyana,” the young man disclosed.
Nicholas is also a gifted basketball player; he picked up the sport a few years ago and has already gained national recognition.
“I started playing basketball in 2017. The boys on Chase Academy Basketball team asked me if I wanted to join because they needed players and I agreed and since then I haven’t stopped playing and I genuinely enjoy and love the sport.
“I managed to make the U-17 Guyana basketball team this year and I have big plans for both sports.”
While acknowledging that it is difficult to balance both sport disciplines, Nicholas noted that it helps him to relieve stress from school or “to clear my head from all bad thoughts and even keep me out of trouble.”
The GTTA and the GABF would certainly not regret investing in such a talent.
