Krishna Nagar won the gold medal in the men's singles SH6 event of badminton, to take the country's medal tally in Tokyo Paralympics to 19.
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Pramod Bhagat scripted history on Saturday by winning India’s first-ever gold medal in badminton in the history of the Paralympics. Pramod defeated Daniel Bethell of Great Britain in the men’s singles badminton SL3 final, to register the unique milestone. Krishna Nagar has increased the joy significantly by earning the nation a second gold medal in the sport. Krishna defeated Hong Kong’s Chu Man Kai by a 21-17, 16-21, 21-17 margin in the Men’s Singles SH6 final of the ongoing Tokyo Paralympics.
The 22-year-old’s fantastic achievement has helped India register its fifth gold and 19th medal overall in the ongoing prestigious event. Krishna is the World No. 2 in the SH6 category, but had to work hard for his fantastic medal after trailing 12-16 against Chu Man Kai in the opening game. However, the 22-year-old made a fine comeback to shun the shuttler and win the opening game.
The second game went Chu Man Kai’s way, as he managed to outperform Krishna who continued to maintain a positive body language despite being outplayed. The decider was a thrilling encounter with the Indian going into the mid-game break with a 11-7 lead. However, the Hong Kong-based shuttler made a fine comeback to make it 14-14. Krishna did not let the opportunity get away from his grasp, wrapping up the game with a few gold medal points to spare. The Indian was overwhelmed with emotion following the triumph, running towards his coach and embracing him.
Krishna Nagar had earlier guaranteed a silver medal for the nation after reaching the final of the men’s singles (SH6). Krishna recorded a fine win against his semi-final opponent Krysten Coombs of Great Britain by a 21-10, 21-11 margin. Krysten will face off against Vitor Goncalves Tavares of Brazil in the bronze medal match.
The second-seeded Indian kept things tight, overwhelming the British para-athlete in straight games in just 26 minutes. He dominated proceedings from the word go, with Krishna’s agility and quick feet enabling the shutter to take a massive 11-6 lead at the mid-game interval. He continued to dominate proceedings, clinching the first game 21-10 in just 11 minutes. The second game witnessed the Indian again outplaying the British opponent by controlling the pace of the match with his long rallies.
Krishna delivered a fantastic display, taking a 11-3 lead at the interval of the second game. The Indian continued to dominate the encounter, covering the court better to pull off a 21-11 win and storm into the gold medal match.
Suhas Yathraj, an IAS officer settled for silver after suffering a defeat in the final against world No 1 Lucaz Mazur by a 21-15, 17-21, 15-21 margin. The Indian shuttler recorded a triumph in the opening game by a comprehensive margin. He further seemed set to wrap up the second clash in an astute manner. However, Lucaz brought all his experience to the fore, pulling off a stellar comeback in a tight game. Both shuttlers gave it their all in the decider with the tie going down to the wire. However, the Frenchman motivated by some extremely vocal support from the home contingent managed to pull off a stellar comeback win.
