Standing-category Indian paddlers Sahana & Prachi win historic bronzes at Para Games

India’s para table tennis campaign at the Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya reached a significant milestone when Baby Sahana Ravi and Prachi Pandey secured bronze medals in the standing categories, providing the country its first-ever podium finishes in these categories at the Games.

The Indian paddlers have won all their medals in bronze, taking their overall tally to seven—a substantial improvement on their return of two bronze medals at the previous edition in Hangzhou. The Games conclude on Saturday.

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Sahana, competing in the women’s singles Class 9, and Prachi, in Class 6, broke new ground by progressing beyond the group and preliminary stages to reach the semifinals. Their performances highlighted India’s growing competitiveness in the standing categories, adding a new dimension to the country’s para table tennis achievements.

Sahana faced a formidable challenge in the last four against China’s Mao Jingdian, a five-time Paralympic gold medallist. She went down 8-11, 2-11, 4-11, but her run to the semifinal secured her a bronze medal.

Baby Sahana Ravi

Prachi also made an impressive deep run in the women’s singles Class 6, and earned a podium finish after navigating the earlier rounds. She entered the semifinals, where she faced Iraq’s Najlah Al-Dayyeni.

India’s established names also contributed to the medal haul. Tokyo Paralympics silver medallist Bhavina Patel won bronze in the women’s singles Class 4-5, despite a 0-3 loss to China’s Zhang Bian in the semifinals. The Indian paddler lost 7-11, 5-11, 7-11.

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Bhavina also joined hands with Shubham Wadhwa in mixed doubles Class XD7 to claim bronze. The Indian pair began their campaign with a convincing 11-9, 11-3, 11-6 quarterfinal victory over Japan’s Kimie Bessho and Masanori Uno, before losing 6-11, 11-8, 5-11, 8-11 to South Korea’s Jang Yeongjin and Lee Migyu in the semifinals.

Sonalben Patel added another bronze in the women’s singles Class 3. She lost 7-11, 5-11, 6-11 to South Korea’s Yoon Jiyu in the semifinals.

The seventh medal came in men’s doubles Class MD4, where Jehan Dorab Madan and Shubham Wadhwa secured bronze. The result completed India’s tally of seven medals in para table tennis at the Games, all bronze, up from two bronze medals at Hangzhou.

Jehan Dorab Madan settled for a bronze medal in the men’s singles Class 1. He lost 4-11, 7-11, 3-11 to South Korea’s Kim Hyeonuk in the semifinal round.

These bronze medals represent a marked step forward from India’s two-bronze performance in para table tennis at Hangzhou. While podium finishes of experienced campaigners such as Bhavina underline the team’s established strength, the breakthroughs by Sahana and Prachi in the standing categories offer particular encouragement for the future.