A slew of international medals in table tennis in the recent past has led to many believing that an Olympic medal in the sport is just around the corner. However, eight-time national champion Kamlesh Mehta believes that a realistic target for an Olympic medal is the 2028 edition of the Games. Mehta explained his reasons.

"We have to still develop infrastructure. Then, it's very important to work on improving players' fitness levels. We also need more and more former players to come on board as coaches. We are currently seeing some ex-players coming back to the game and that's a good sign. All these things put together can help achieve the goal [Olympic medal]," Mehta told mid-day on the sidelines of the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) players draft at the National Sports Club of India in Worli yesterday. Currently, 27 Indian players are ranked in the world top 100 across various categories and Mehta felt things are moving in the right direction: