AICHI-NAGOYA — Bhavina Patel added another medal to her decorated career by winning bronze in the women’s singles Class 4-5 table tennis event at the Asian Para Games 2026 on Tuesday. The Tokyo Paralympics silver medallist lost 7-11, 5-11, 7-11 to China’s Zhang Bian in the semifinals, ending her singles campaign but securing India’s 12th medal of the Games — the country’s first podium finish on Day 2 after an 11-medal haul on the opening day.
The defeat came against formidable opposition: the 40-year-old Bian is an eight-time Paralympic champion and a silver medallist at the previous Asian Para Games. Bhavina’s bronze is her second successive bronze at the mega-event, following her singles bronze at the 2022 edition, and she had earlier won a silver in doubles at the 2018 Asian Para Games.
The 39-year-old Indian veteran from Gujarat is also a former Commonwealth Games gold-winner. The Class 4-5 classification is for athletes who have full upper body control but compete in a wheelchair due to leg or lower-limb impairments.
Bhavina Patel’s Journey to the Podium
Bhavina has been one of India’s leading para table tennis players for over a decade and a half. She made history at the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020 by winning silver in the women’s singles event — India’s first-ever Paralympic medal in table tennis. Diagnosed with polio at a young age, she did not allow the condition to stop her from pursuing her sporting dreams.
She began training seriously and won her first gold medal at the Para Table Tennis Nationals in Bengaluru in 2009. She went on to establish herself on the international stage, and has won more than 70 medals in ITTF ranking tournaments during her career. In the 2025-26 season alone, she won 25 medals across singles and doubles events — her tally included 17 singles medals, with 12 gold, two silver and three bronze, along with eight doubles medals including three silver and five bronze.
She continued her success at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, where she won gold in women’s singles. Apart from table tennis, Bhavina also works with the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
Bhavina Patel’s Bronze Caps Strong Day for India
Bhavina, who was named India’s flag-bearer at the opening ceremony of the Asian Para Games, signed off from the singles competition with yet another podium finish for the nation, underlining her remarkable longevity at the top of para table tennis.
Meanwhile, in para badminton, India’s mixed SL3-SU5 pair of Pramod Bhagat and Manisha Ramdass assured themselves of at least a bronze by advancing to the semifinals, defeating Thailand’s Srinavakul Chanida and Teamarrom Siripong 21-15, 21-14 in just 25 minutes in the quarterfinals. They were joined in the final four by fellow countrymen Nitesh Kumar and Thulasimati Murugesan.
Indian para archers also enjoyed a clean sweep in the compound events, with all four archers — Sheetal Devi, Payal Nag, Toman Kumar and Shyam Sunder Swami — marching through to the quarterfinals, while Harvinder Singh progressed in the men’s recurve event and Bhawna advanced in the women’s recurve category. There were setbacks too: Pooja lost 2-6 to Malaysia’s Chi Hui Loh in the round of 16, and Vijay Sundi was eliminated after losing a shoot-off to Chinese Taipei.
Bhavina Patel’s Bronze in India’s Medal Surge
Bhavina’s bronze took India’s tally at the ongoing Asian Para Games to 12, marking the country’s first medal on Day 2 after a haul of 11 medals on the opening day. The Day 1 medallists read like a roll call of Indian para sport: golds for Mona Agarwal, Nishad Kumar, Soumya and Rinku Hooda; silvers for Avani Lekhara, Kokila, Radha Venkatesh, Ajeet Singh and Ravi Budigina; and bronzes for Kapil Parmar and Ravanni Valasanaini.
With the contingent realistically eyeing a tally that could breach the 20-medal mark — and possibly touch 25 — on Day 2, Bhavina’s early podium finish set the tone for another productive day. Her career, now spanning more than 70 ITTF medals and a Paralympic silver, continues to inspire a generation of Indian para athletes who watched her make history in Tokyo and have followed her through Commonwealth gold and successive Asian Para Games podiums.