India’s para table tennis duo, Bhavinaben Patel and Sonalben Patel, faced a tough defeat in the women’s doubles WD 10 quarterfinal at the Paris Paralympics on Friday. They fell short against South Korea’s A Young Jung and Sunghya Moon in a 39-minute battle, ending their doubles campaign with a 1-3 scoreline. The match, held at the South Paris Arena, saw the eighth-seeded Indian pair lose the first two sets 5-11 and 6-11 before taking the third set 11-9. However, they couldn’t secure the fourth set, losing 6-11.
Both Bhavinaben and Sonalben are now focused on their individual singles competitions. Bhavinaben, who won a silver medal at the Tokyo Paralympics in the class 4 category, holds the distinction of being India’s first-ever table tennis medalist at the Paralympics. She was diagnosed with polio at the tender age of 12 months. Sonalben, competing in the class 3 category, also contracted polio at six months, resulting in a 90% disability affecting both her legs and her right hand.
The para table tennis classifications encompass 11 classes in total. Classes TT1-5 are for wheelchair athletes, TT6-10 for standing athletes, and TT11 for athletes with intellectual impairments. Despite the setback in the doubles, both Bhavinaben and Sonalben are determined to make their mark in the singles events and showcase their resilience and skill on the international stage.
