Asian Para Games: Nitesh Kumar Trumps Pramod Bhagat To Win Gold, Thulasimathi Murugesan Claims Badminton Silver

India's Nitesh Kumar and Naveen Sivakumar clinched gold medals in men's singles SL3 and SL4 respectively in the badminton competition at the Asian Para Games in Nagoya on Friday. Nitesh produced a clinical performance to beat compatriot Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in a clash between two Paralympic gold medallists. "Very happy to win the Asian Games gold medal. Last time I was close, I was leading 19-16 in the third set, and then I lost. So this time, winning it and again winning in two sets against Pramod is, of course, very special, and I think it's one of the rarest of the rare things to see," said Nitesh, the Paris Paralympic gold medallist.

Naveen then showcased his prowess to beat Indonesia's Fredy Setiawan 21-9, 21-17 in 36 minutes to claim the top prize.

Bhagat, who had won gold in the 2018 and 2022 editions, had to settle for silver.

"It doesn't feel that good because I had won two consecutive gold medals at the Asian Games, and I was trying to win a third gold here. I had everything, but today some of my strokes went wrong and my judgment was slightly off, which is why I am contenting myself with just a silver," said the Tokyo Paralympics gold medallist.

India's Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan also signed off with silver after losing 12-21, 13-21 to China's Li Fengmei in the women's singles SH6 final.

Earlier, the 24-year-old Thulasimathi Murugesan, a silver medallist at the Paris Paralympics, lost 18-21, 11-21 to China's Yang Qiuxia in the women's singles SU5 final at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium.

Murugesan, however, remains in contention for two gold medals. She will partner Nitesh in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 final against Indonesia's Leani Ratri Oktila and Hikmat Ramdani. Later, she will team up with Manasi Girishchandra Joshi to take on China's Yang Qiuxia and Xiao Zuxian in the women's doubles SL3-SU5 final.

In para badminton, SL3 is for players with significant lower-limb impairments who compete on a half court, while SL4 is for athletes with lower-limb impairments who have better walking and running balance. SU5 is for players with upper-limb impairments, while SH6 is for athletes with short stature.

India Win Gold In Para Recurve Men's Doubles Archery

Harvinder Singh and Vijay Sundi clinched the gold medal for India in the para recurve men's doubles event at the Asian Para Games here on Friday, beating China 5-1 in the final at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square.

The Indian duo shared the opening set with China after both sides shot 35. They then took control, winning the second set 37-36 and the third 38-36 to seal the title and take the match 5-1 on set points.

The Chinese pair of Yun Duo and Zhao Lixue could not keep up with the Indians' consistency in the closing two sets, as the latter consolidated their position in the pecking order with another top podium finish.

Indian archers Bhawna Choudhary and Pooja Jatyan, however, lost to China's Gao Zihan and Wang Xueqian 0-6 in the women's para recurve doubles final to settle for the silver medal.

The Indian women's pair lost all three sets, scoring 31, 30 and 29 points against China's 38, 35 and 39 at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Featured Video Of The Day

India Ends CWG Boxing Campaign With Record-Breaking Seven Gold Medals