Tanvi Patri Wins India’s First Women’s Youth Olympic Badminton Medal

Tanvi Patri won silver in girls’ singles badminton at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal, on November 5, becoming the first Indian woman to win a Youth Olympic badminton medal. The 15-year-old from Odisha was also the first Indian woman to reach the singles final. China’s reigning world junior champion, Zhang Yi Xin, beat her 15-21, 21-13, 26-24. Patri took the opening game before Zhang levelled the match. In the deciding game, Zhang built a 19-10 lead, but Patri recovered to extend the contest beyond the usual winning target. She saved five match points and earned three of her own before Zhang secured gold with a 26-24 third-game victory. The Indian player had reached the final by defeating Japan’s Yuzuno Watanabe 21-14, 11-21, 21-19 in the November 4 semifinal. Describing that win, Patri said, “In the last game I tried to play faster downwards”. She explained that her net play helped draw shorter lifts and create chances to attack. Before the final, she said, “I just want to give my best.” Patri, the Asian Under-17 champion, also beat Thailand’s Kungkaew Kakanik 21-17, 21-13 in the quarterfinal. Her silver adds to India’s previous Youth Olympic badminton medals: H.S. Prannoy won silver in Singapore in 2010, and Lakshya Sen took silver in Buenos Aires in 2018.