- Tuesday, February 25, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
BHAVINABEN Patel on Friday (27) scripted history by becoming the first table-tennis player from the country to secure a medal in the ongoing Tokyo Paralympics, setting the tone for an upbeat contingent aiming for the best-ever finish at the mega event.
The 34-year-old Patel, who is competing in her maiden Paralympics, ensured a podium for herself by entering the semi-finals with a straight-game win over Serbia’s Borislav Peric Rankovic, the world No.5, in the women’s singles Class 4 event.
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Patel, who was diagnosed with polio when she was 12 months old, beat her opponent 11-5 11-6 11-7 in a quarterfinal match that lasted 18 minutes.
“I could win my match today due to the support of the people of India. Please keep supporting me so that I can win my semifinal match,” Patel said after the quarterfinal match.
Earlier in the day, Patel beat Brazil’s Joyce de Oliveira 12-10 13-11, 11-6 in the Round of 16 to become the first Indian table-tennis player to make the quarterfinals in the Paralympics.
“It is sure that we can see a medal from her. Tomorrow morning’s match (semifinal) is a huge decider what colour of the medal she will win,” Paralympic Committee of India president Deepa Malik said in a video footage on her Twitter handle.
In other events, Indian powerlifter Sakina Khatun finished fifth in the women’s 50 kilograms (kg) category while Jaideep failed to log a single legal lift in the men’s 65kg event.
