PARIS: Indian para-shuttler Suhas Yathiraj is grappling with mixed emotions after securing his second consecutive Paralympic silver medal.
The 41-year-old shuttler, who entered the Games as the world No. 1 in the men’s singles SL4 category, was expected to win gold. However, he fell short in the final, losing to France's Lucas Mazur in straight games, 9-21, 13-21.
“Coming here as world No. 1 and as world champion, there was pressure and expectations on me. I too expected that I would do well here. Ideally, I would have liked to win the gold medal, which is every player’s dream,” Suhas said on Tuesday.
“Winning the silver is a mixed feeling. There is sadness and disappointment of missing the gold. But when the feeling sinks in, then you will realize qualifying for the Paralympics and representing your country was a big thing. And winning the silver is a proud moment, and I feel extremely humbled and grateful,” he added.
Suhas struggled in the summit clash against Mazur, who had also defeated him in the Tokyo Paralympics final. Reflecting on the two silver medals, Suhas remarked, “Earlier, the country and myself didn’t have the belief that we could win medals in Paralympic badminton. I had no idea what my performance would be. That was a different kind of feeling. Both the silver medals had their challenges. As I said, the first time people don’t take you so seriously until you perform at the highest level. But playing under expectations in itself is a different kind of pressure.”
Despite the gold eluding him once again, Suhas finds joy in his journey. “When I started this Paralympics qualification journey, I had not played for one or two years and was world No. 39. From there to reach the top 12 and then qualify for Level-1 tournaments and from there to win the Asian Para Games gold, world championships gold, and become world No. 1… you need to enjoy this journey,” he said.
As an Arjuna awardee, Suhas views the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics as a turning point for Indian Olympic and Paralympic sports. “Tokyo 2020 was a watershed moment for Indian para sports and Indian Olympic sports in general. Everyone knows cricket is popular in India, but in the last many years, the way Olympic and Paralympic sports have received support from society is unimaginable. In the coming years, it will only grow, and that will improve our medal tally as well,” he concluded.