New Delhi, August 29: Bhavina Patel ended her maiden Paralympic Games journey on a contended note, finishing with a silver medal in the table tennis (Class 4) events in Tokyo this morning.
The Indian, who became the first woman paddler to win a medal at the Games, lost 7-11, 5-11, 6-11 in the final to world No. 1 Zhou Ying of China. Thus, Zhou won her third title, having won back-to-back gold medals at the Beijing (2008) and London (2012) Games.
Incidentally, Bhavina is also the second Indian female participant to win a Paralympic Games medal, opening the account for India in Tokyo.
Though the Indian began well this morning, matching stroke for stroke, Zhou proved a class apart. At 3-3, the Chinese took the initiative and broke away. Then she maintained the lead to go one-up. The top-ranked player did not need any further invitation or motivation after completing the opening game the way she did.
Zhou mixed her shots, exploiting angles well. However, Bhavina groped in the dark in a well-lit Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium Hall. Finding her plight, the Chinese shifted into higher gears, upsetting the world No. 8’s rhythm further in the second game. Bhavina could never make any adjustments in her game plan.
The 2-0 cushion for the Chinese was good enough to push the Indian to the brink. And, as expected, Bhavina lowered her guard without presenting any variety from her arsenal. It made the Chinese task that much easier.
And, as expected, Bhavina lowered her guard without bringing any variety to the table, and nothing left in her arsenal. It made the Chinese task that much easier, who needed just 19 minutes overall.
For Bhavina and other para-TT players, the silver medal in Tokyo would serve as the stepping stone and inspire a generation of players. The Mehsana girl, who got afflicted with polio at 12, started playing table tennis as a pastime sport. But she got hooked to the game when she joined the Computer Science course in Ahmedabad.
It was not all hunky-dory for Bhavina, with crutches on, to reach the practice venue regularly. It meant taking the few bus and auto rides, and she was up for them. But her determination got further strengthened when she had a reliable friend in Nakul Patel, then an under-19 cricketer, and now her spouse. The two together scaled the mountain of hurdles in front of her.
Nakul was apt when he praised Bhavina, saying, “she was determined and her drive to overcome the obstacles that saw her finish on the podium here in Tokyo.” Nakul, who is with Bhavina in Tokyo, felt as proud as every Indian back home.
It was not a surprise that President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the country congratulating the 34-year-old for her historic feat. In a fitting tweet, the Prime Minister said: “The remarkable Bhavina Patel has scripted history! She brings home a historic silver medal. Congratulations to her for it. Her life journey is motivating and will also draw more youngsters towards sports.”
