Paralympics: Suhas Yathiraj, Nitesh Kumar Seal Para Badminton Semi-Final Spots

Both men are seeded first in their respective categories.

Tokyo silver medallist shuttler Suhas Yathiraj and Nitesh Kumar continued their impressive run to secure spots in the men's singles SL4 and SL3 semifinals, respectively, at the Paralympics here on Friday. Suhas, a 2007 batch IAS officer, defeated Korea's Shin Kyung Hwan 26-24, 21-14 in his second match, topping the three-man Group A in the SL4 category. Meanwhile, Nitesh, a 29-year-old IIT Mandi graduate, dominated China's Yang Jianyuan with a convincing 21-5, 21-11 victory, ensuring a top-two finish in the four-man Group A of the SL3 category.

In the SL4 class, the group toppers advance to the last four, while in the SL3 class, the top two players from each of the two groups qualify for the semifinals.

Nitesh, who suffered permanent leg damage due to an accident in 2009, will next face Thailand's Bunsun Mongkhon in his final Group A match.

However, it was a disappointing day for Manasi Joshi and Manoj Sarkar, as they both suffered their second consecutive defeats, ending their chances of reaching the semifinals in their respective groups.

Manasi, the 2019 World Champion, narrowly lost to Ukraine's Oksana Kozyna 21-10, 15-21, 21-23 in her second women's singles SL3 Group A match. She had previously lost her opening match to Indonesia's Qonitah Ikhtiar Syakuroh on Thursday.