Bhagat and Manisha won gold medals in Para Badminton World Championship
Paralympic champion Pramod Bhagat and rising player Manisha Ramdas on Sunday emerged champions as India clinched a total of 16 medals at the BWF Para Badminton World Championships here. Bhagat first landed on the court. He won the men’s singles SL3 category title in a spectacular manner. Bhagat won the gold medal by defeating compatriot Nitesh Kumar 21-19 21-19 in the final that lasted 53 minutes. On the other hand, for 17-year-old Manisha, this gold medal was like a dream come true.
Manisha defeated local star Mamiko Toyoda 21-15 21-15 to win the women’s singles SU5 gold medal. He dominated the entire match. Manisha made her debut in senior internationals in March this year itself and it has certainly been an achievement for the Chennai-based player. Manisha said, “It was the biggest moment of my life. I have been waiting for this moment and have worked very hard for the last few months. It is a wonderful feeling to be a world champion. I hope that I will continue to make the country proud by achieving such results in future. ,
Bhagat has a total of 11 medals in the World Championship with six gold, two silver and three bronze. He has reached all stage finals except the 2007 and 2017 World Championships. He said, “It is a wonderful feeling to be the world champion again. This year has been good for me and it is wonderful to end the year with yet another achievement. Bhagat said, “The match was not easy as we knew each other’s game and strategy. Nitesh was making a comeback in the second game but I am happy to have won. ,
“It is a big win for me, it shows that I am moving in the right direction. But the pair of Bhagat and Manoj Sarkar had to be content with a silver medal in the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 category. The Indian pair lost a one-game lead as they went down 21-14 18-21 13-21 to Hikmat Ramdani and Ukun Rukaendi of Indonesia. Basel 2019 champions Mansi Joshi and Nitya Srey won bronze medals among the top Indian badminton players.
