Coaches Mario Genovese and Alex Anastasi were jubilant after the semi-final victories which landed Simon and Andrezej in the final.

Genovese said: "It was a relief to see both players in the final. That meant gold and silver for sure for Malta, something we had never achieved in the past," he said.

Genovese had been at Simon Gerada's table in the semi-finals, while Anastasi was at Andrezej's match.

But in the final, the two coaches sat down close to each other and it was evident that they instructed both players to go out and play to entertain themselves and the small crowd present, among them, quite unfortunately, just a few of the Maltese contingent.

Genovese considered the double win (team and singles) as a big boost for the sport in Malta. "We are already enjoying a boom at present. Now, following this win, I am convinced that there will be other youngsters eager to take up this discipline," he said.

Alex Anastasi was also ecstatic following the victory. "We have done well here to win two golds, a silver and a bronze. It is definitely the best result in the men's field in these Games. But, in my opinion, we could also have done better. I do not want to sound arrogant, but I feel we could have also won the doubles event as these two players have shown that they were the best two players in the competition."