Gujarat’s Bhavina Patel reaches semi-finals in Tokyo Paralympics

GANDHIDHAM, Aug 27: Making her debut at the Paralympics a memorable one, champion Para table tennis star Bhavina Patel of Gujarat reaches the semi-finals of the Tokyo Games on Friday.
In the quarters, Bhavina scripted a major upset as she shocked World no.2 Borislava Peric-Rankovic of Serbia 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 to become the first Indian paddler to reach semi-finals at the Games.
“GSTTA family wants to congratulate our champion table tennis star on her imperious form and her monumental performance,” GSTTA president Mr. Vipul Mittra, IAS, said. “She has been a top-class player for more than a decade now and I am happy that she got a chance to showcase her talent at sports biggest stage. I am sure she will continue to shine and inspire others. I wish her all the best for the semi-finals tomorrow,” Mr Mittra added.
Ahmedabad based 34-year-old looked to be in great form on Friday as she had shocked Brazil’s World no. 8 Joyce de Oliveira in a Round of 16 match earlier in the day. Bhavina was at her best as she recorded a 12-10, 13-11, 11-6 win.
It was a remarkable turnaround of the fortune for Bhavina as she started her Paralympic campaign with a 3-11, 9-11, 2-11 loss against the World no. 1 Ying Zhou of China in her opening group A match on Wednesday.
But the former World no. 2 bounced back with an 11-7, 9-11, 17-15, 13-11 win over current World no. 9 Megan Shackleton of Great Britain on Thursday. The match was a highlight of Bhavina’s biggest strength – her resilience – as she turned around the table with her giant-killing form.