There is a sense of anticipation on the morning of Sunday 23rd May 2010 in the Olimpijsky Sports Complex in Luzhniki situated somewhat in the north of Moscow.

Finally after a successful bid, years of preparation, months of anticipation, the day has finally arrived.

The Liebherr World Team Championships is ready to start.

A transformation has taken place since I visited the venue in November 2009, when tennis was the order of the day, the Kremlin Cup was being contested and teenage girls squealed when Marat Safan walked by, racing up to the tall Russian to beg his precious autograph and then leaving giggling in true girly mode.

Four tennis courts have been replaced by a total of no less than 60 table tennis tables all supplied by Shanghai’s Double Happiness Company.

Six designer tables grace the main arena where volunteers, staff and officials gradually change from busy bees to quietly sit on the honey pot as the grand plan comes together.

Only some 40 minutes before the first ball is to be struck in anger do players venture into the pristine area; Ukraine’s Maragaryta Pesotska and Iryna Motsyk break the ice. It’s like an English party; nobody dances for the first hour, then gradually two brave souls take to the floor and the rest follow like herded sheep.

However, in the second hall where 28 tables are arranged there is a plethora of activity; there is no reluctance to enter the dance floor. Every table has players practising, ready for the battle, relishing the occasion.

Then at the back of the main arena a further 20 tables for practice are situated, again the party is in full swing; it’s swing and sway the Moscow way.

Questions, a plethora of questions as delegates, officials, players and enthusiasts try to acclimatise to the geography of the large venue and search for a wireless internet link.

In the 21st century life comes to a stop without the magic of the internet; how on earth did we ever survive in the 1960s?

So, with the massive sign at the end of the hall advertising the Liebherr 2010 World Team Championships and Fedor Kuzmin looking down from above, the tournament is ready to start.

Is really six years since we met in Doha, four years since Bremen and two since Guangzhou?

Time flies and time has flown since Moscow was confirmed as the home for the 2010 event.

The time has come, let the show begin.