India wins three badminton golds at Asian Para Games

India won three gold medals in badminton at the Asian Para Games on October 23, with Nitesh Kumar and Naveen Sivakumar taking men’s singles titles and Thulasimathi Murugesan and Manasi Joshi winning women’s doubles. The results brought India’s badminton campaign to a close with 16 medals: three gold, five silver and eight bronze, according to the reported final tally. Nitesh beat compatriot Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in the men’s singles SL3 final. The victory reversed the outcome of their meeting in the previous edition, when Nitesh lost to Bhagat. Nitesh said the win was especially meaningful after that earlier defeat. Bhagat, who had won the title in the two previous editions, took silver. Naveen claimed the men’s singles SL4 gold by defeating Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan 21-9, 21-17. The final lasted 36 minutes, and the title came in Naveen’s Asian Para Games debut. India’s two men’s singles victories accounted for two of its three badminton golds. The third gold came in the women’s doubles SL3-SU5 final, where Thulasimathi and Joshi defeated China’s Yang Qiuxia and Xiao Zuxian 21-16, 21-13. Thulasimathi also won silver in women’s singles SU5, losing to Yang 18-21, 11-21,...