Paralympics 2024: Nitesh Kumar, Suhas Yathiraj beat China's Yang Jianyuan, Korea’s Shin Kyung, reach semi-finals

Suhas Yathiraj who clinched a silver medal in Tokyo Paralympics 2020 continued his good run by beating Korea’s Shin Kyung Hwan 26-24, 21-14 in the second match. This win placed him at the apex of the Group A in the SL4 category and paved the way for a semifinals’ spot. Yathiraj has done exceptionally well, especially for someone who is a civil servant and at the same time a professional athlete.

Nitesh Kumar, a 29-year-old IIT Mandi graduate, also came out all guns blazing and outplayed China’s Yang Jianyuan 21-5, 21-11. This victory ensured his second place in the four-man Group A of the SL3 category that made him proceed to the semi-finals. Kumar’s story of how he got to the Paralympics is quite inspiring, given that he suffered from permanent leg injury in an accident in 2009.

The class in which Suhas Yathiraj participates is SL4, which is for the athletes with some impairment in the lower limbs and minor problem in balance while walking or running. On the other hand, the SL3 class in which Nitesh Kumar and Manoj Sarkar compete is for the players with more severe lower limb impairment and the game must be played on the half size court.

In the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 category, Nitesh Kumar and Thulasimathi Murugesan were beaten by Indonesian pair Ramdani Hikmat and Oktila Leani Ratri 15-21, 8-21 in the second group stage match. Likewise, Suhas Yathiraj and Palak Kohli were defeated by France’s Lucas Mazur and Faustine Noel 15-21, 9-21 in the second match of Group A.

The Indian para-badminton team continues to have high hopes, with Suhas Yathiraj and Nitesh Kumar ready to shine in the next semifinals.