Brit netter makes ‘impossible’ table tennis shot at Paralympics

London, England, United Kingdom (4E Sports) – British table netter David Wetherill may have lost the battle but he left a lasting memory during his London Paralympic match against Germany’s Thomasz Kusiak.

Wetherill, despite needing crutches to walk and play due to a rare, genetic bone development disorder called multiple epiphyseal dysplasia, made a jaw-dropping shot during an intense rally against Kusiak that left spectators in awe.

The 23-year-old Wetherill, competing in his second Paralympics, was caught off-guard by Kusiak’s drive to the right side of the table.

But the British never gave up, lunging for the ball and hitting a cross-court forehand that barely clipped the table and went out of his opponent’s reach for the point.

The crowd erupted in jubilation while the announcer described the shot as “ridiculous” several times.

“Table Tennis is an instinctive sport, may never play a shot like it ever again. Fight for every point, was never letting that one go,” Wetherill later said on his Twitter account.

Wetherill, however, lost the match, 11-7, 5-11, 23-25, 7-11. Before facing Kusiak, Wetherill bounced back from a two-set deficit to beat Raimondo Alecci of Italy, 7-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-9.

A University of Sheffield chemistry graduate and a former world No. 2, Wetherill made it to the quarterfinals of the table tennis event at Beijing Paralympics in 2008.

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