Suhas and Nitesh keep India on course for badminton gold at Paralympics – ThePrint – PTIFeed

Paris, Sept 1 (PTI) – Suhas Yathiraj and Nitesh Kumar moved a step closer to their first gold medal on Sunday after reaching the final of the men's singles in their respective categories at the Paris Paralympics.

While Suhas, a silver medallist at the Tokyo Games, will become the first Indian badminton player to win two consecutive medals at the Paralympics after defeating compatriot Sukant Kadam 21-17, 21-12 in SL4, Nitesh secured a medal in SL3 with a 21-16, 21-12 win over Japan's Daisuke Fujihara in another semifinal.

“I still can't believe it (two consecutive finals). I thank God. I gave my best and didn't let myself be pressured,” Suhas said.

Nitesh, who lost his left leg in a train accident in 2009, will face Britain's Daniel Bethell in the summit clash. Bethell, who finished second to Pramod Bhagat at the Tokyo Games, is a formidable opponent and sets the stage for a thrilling finale on Monday.

Sukant will next play for the bronze medal.

With his victory, Nitesh, an IIT Mandi graduate who won three medals including silver in singles at the Asian Para Games, ensured India returns with a medal from the SL3 category after Pramod Bhagat won gold in the inaugural Para-badminton event in Tokyo three years ago.

“I showed consistent performances and was firmly convinced that I would make it to the final. The fact that I actually made it is a great feeling, because the pressure is there and I had lost my mixed doubles, but I didn't let that bother me,” said the 29-year-old.

Computer engineer Suhas, who served as the District Magistrate of Gautam Buddh Nagar and also as the DM of Prayagraj during the COVID-19 pandemic, delivered a convincing performance to secure his place in the finale.

Suhas, who never let his ankle injury stop him from pursuing his passion for badminton, said of Mazur: “We know each other very well. I beat him at the World Championship this year and he would definitely want revenge.”

“I lost to him in Tokyo, but luckily I won gold at the Asian Para Games and am number one in the world. I don't want to put too much pressure on myself. I just go out there and have fun.” In SL4, athletes compete standing up and have less severe disabilities than in SL3, where players like Nitesh compete with more severe lower limb disabilities and have to play on a half-width court.

Nitesh's sporting career began with his passion for football in his childhood. However, an accident in Visakhapatnam left him bedridden for months and left him with permanent leg damage. Despite this, his interest in sports continued, especially during his time at IIT-Mandi, where he developed a keen interest in badminton.

Along with his studies, he continued to hone his skills and made his debut at the Nationals in Faridabad, where he won a bronze medal for Haryana.

The following year, he won silver in singles and bronze in doubles in Bengaluru, establishing himself in para-badminton.

His national success culminated at the 2020 Nationals, where he defeated Pramod and Manoj Sarkar to win gold.

Nitesh's win secured India's third medal in para-badminton after Manisha Ramadass confirmed a podium place after securing a women's singles SU5 semifinal clash with compatriot Thulasimathi Murugesan.

Manisha, 19, who was born with Erb's palsy that affected her right arm, had no trouble defeating Japan's Mamiko Toyoda 21-13, 21-16 in the quarterfinals.

Erb's palsy is a nerve disease in the shoulder and arm that leads to weakness or loss of muscle function.

The second-seeded Indian left-hander needed 30 minutes to defeat her unseeded rival.

In the semifinals, Manisha will face number one seed Thulasimathi, who defeated Portuguese Beatriz Monteiro in Group A on Saturday.

In the SU5 category, players suffer from an impairment of the upper limbs. The impairment can affect both the playing hand and the non-playing hand.

India's medal hopes were further boosted by Nithya Sivan Sumathy, who advanced to the semifinals of the women's singles SH6 with a 21-4, 21-7 win over Poland's Oliwia Szmigiel. Nithya will face China's Lin Shuangbao in the semifinals, a tough opponent who has a 4-0 head-to-head record against the Indian, including a win in the group stage.

On Saturday, Sukant Kadam earned the right to compete in the SL4 semifinals against compatriot Suhas Yathiraj, securing his country's first medal in badminton at this edition of the Games.

However, Mandeep Kaur and Palak Kohli were eliminated after separate defeats in their respective quarterfinals on Sunday.

Mandeep competed in the SL3 category and posed little challenge to third seed Nigerian Bolaji Mariam Eniola, losing the match in 23 minutes by 8-21 and 9-21.

For Mandeep, it was his second consecutive defeat against Eniola after he had already lost to the Nigerian in the group stage.

In the SL4 category, Paralympic bronze medallist Palak lost to Indonesian Khalimatus Sadiyah in 28 minutes with 19:21 and 15:21. PTI ATK AH ATK PDS PDS

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