Pramod Bhagat, Suhas Yathiraj, Krishna Nagar into Finals of Para Badminton at Tokyo Paralympics; Manoj Sarkar, Tarun Dhillon to Fight for Bronze

Pramod Bhagat, Suhas Yathiraj, Krishna Nagar into Finals of Para Badminton at Tokyo Paralympics; Manoj Sarkar, Tarun Dhillon to Fight for Bronze

Pramod Bhagat

The second to last day of the Tokyo Paralympics saw the semifinals and finals of men’s singles para badminton. With almost all of the Indian squad making the semifinals, an action packed day awaits with the hopes of clinching several medals.

The first match for the Indian team was the men’s Sl3 semifinals, and India’s ace para shuttler Pramod Bhagat would go up against Japan’s Daisuke Fukuhara. The top seeded Indian was on his game, and did not waste any time asserting his dominance on the court.

Bhagat took the first set 21-11, finishing it off in just 15 minutes. The second set saw Fukuhara fight back, but Pramod proved too strong for him, and the latter took the set once again 21-16. Bhagat was into the finals of men’s SL3 badminton, winning the match in straight sets, assuring another medal for India.

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The next match saw Manoj Sarkar take on the second seeded Great Britain’s Daniel Bethell. While Sarkar gave it his all, Bethell dominated the first game, winning 21-8 in just 17 minutes. The second set was no different, as the Brit took the win 21-10 in 21 minutes. Manoj Sarkar went on to lose the match, but will play for the bronze medal against Japan’s Daisuke Fukuhara.

Pramod Bhagat is all set to take on Great Britain’s Behtell in the gold medal match of the men’s singles SL3 badminton.

Tokyo Paralympics: Suhas Yathiraj Makes it to the Finals; Tarun Dhillon to Play for Bronze

Suhas Yathiraj- Tokyo Paralympics
Suhas Yathiraj

The men’s singles SL4 category saw another 2 Indians in contention, Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj and Tarun Dhillon. Yathiraj would take on Indonesia’s Setiawan Fredy in the semifinals.

Yathiraj spent no time in clinching the first set in style, winning with utter dominance in the 11 minutes. The Indian took the set 21-9 and was on to the next set as quickly as possible. The second set saw Fredy fight back, but despite a tough game, Yathiraj had an extremely strong showing. Suhas took the second set 21-15, and by winning in straight sets her was off to the finals of the SL4 category.

Tarun Dhillon went up against France’s Lucas Mazur in a nail biting and enthralling match. The first set started off with Mazur taking victory, winning 21-16. However Tarun came back strong, and took the second set 21-16, making the score level, and forcing the match to a decider set.

After putting up a strong fight, it was not meant to be for Tarun, as he lost the last set 18-21. Tarun will now take on Setiawan Fredy in the bronze medal match, while Suhas Yathiraj will fight for gold against Lucas Mazur in the men’s SL4 singles category.

In the SH6 category, India’s Krishna Nagar assured himself a medal, after a dominant win over Great Britain’s Krysten Coombs. Nagar won the match in straight sets, taking the first set 21-10 in just 11 minutes. The second set was no different, as the second seeded Indian quickly won the game with ease, 21-11. Nagar advances to the gold medal match, where he will face Man Kai Chu of Hong Kong.

Also read: Tokyo Paralympics: Manish Narwal rewrites Paralympic record to bag gold as Singhraj Adhana clinches silver, his second medal