Dakar: Tanvi Patri fought hard before going down to China's Zhang Yi Xin in a gruelling three-game final, but she nonetheless scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman shuttler to win an individual silver at the Youth Olympics here.
In a gripping summit clash that lasted an hour and 22 minutes, the 15-year-old Indian saved six match points and had three opportunities to seal the title. But she eventually lost 21-15, 13-21, 24-26 to the reigning world junior champion on Thursday night.
"I think this achievement means a lot to me and it will encourage me to play well in the future tournaments. And next year I am going to compete in Indonesia for the International Challenge Tournament. I hope I play well there," she said after the match.
Before Tanvi, HS Prannoy (2010) and Lakshya Sen (2018) were the only Indians to have won individual silver medals at the Youth Olympic Games.
In the gold medal match, Tanvi took her time to get going in the opening game before she claimed seven straight points to go from 3-5 to 10-5. The Indian created many openings with her punch tosses and controlled the net brilliantly to then bag the opening game in 25 minutes.
Tanvi began the second game by taking a 4-0 lead before the drift coming from behind her started to affect her control on the clears and Zhang took control of the game after the mid game interval to force a decider.
Zhang took charge of the decider early with her trademark cross court drops to open up a 19-10 lead. Tanvi fought back to close the gap to four points at 19-15 but an error on a cross-court smash from the Indian handed her opponent five match points.
Tanvi saved those points and had three chances to wrap up the gold medal. But it was the experience of Zhang that ultimately made the difference.
"Tanvi Patri has made the entire nation proud with a historic achievement at the Youth Olympic Games. Winning a silver medal at just 15 is an extraordinary accomplishment and a moment of immense pride for India," Badminton Association of India General Secretary Sanjay Mishra said.
"Her fighting spirit, composure and performances throughout the competition reflect the immense potential of our young sporting generation. This achievement is a significant milestone for Indian sport and a testament to the growing presence of our athletes on the global stage," he added.Â
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