India's para-badminton journey at the Paris Paralympics hit a rough patch as shuttlers Manasi Joshi and Mandeep Kaur suffered defeats in their women’s singles SL3 Group Stage matches on Thursday.

In Group A, Manasi Joshi, the World Championships 2019 gold medalist, competed against Indonesia's Qontiah Ikhitar Syakuroh. Although Manasi won the first game, Syakuroh staged a comeback to secure victory with scores of 21-16, 13-21, and 18-21.

Meanwhile, in Group B, Mandeep Kaur faced a tough opponent in Nigeria's Mariam Eniola Bolaji. Mandeep was defeated in two straight games with scores of 8-21 and 14-21, ending her chance in this match.

Both Indian players still have two more group stage matches to play. They need to win these upcoming matches to keep their hopes alive for advancing to the knockout rounds.

Other Indian women’s para-badminton players, including Palak Kohli, Thulasimathi Murugesan, Manisha Ramdass, and Nithya Sre, are set to compete soon.

This year, India has sent its largest-ever team to the Paralympics, featuring 84 athletes across 12 sports. This reflects the growing strength of India’s para-sports sector. The goal is to exceed the achievements from Tokyo, where India won a total of 19 medals, including two golds, a silver, and a bronze in badminton alone.

India’s strong presence at the Paris 2024 Paralympics aims to build on the success from Tokyo 2020 and set new records.

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