Feisty Thulasimathi Murugesan turns ‘alien’ tag into medal magic

Called an “alien” and bullied for her dark skin and congenital left-hand deformity, Thulasimathi Murugesan has turned badminton into her most eloquent answer to those who doubted her abilities.On Friday, the 24-year-old produced a golden flourish at Asian Para Games, winning three medals in a single day to spearhead India’s campaign. Thulasimathi and Manasi Joshi clinched women’s doubles SL3-SU5 gold, beating China’s Yang Qiuxia and Xiao Zuxian 21-16, 21-13.She added singles SU5 silver after losing to Yang 18-21, 11-21, before partnering Nitesh Kumar to mixed doubles SL3-SU5 silver, losing to Indonesia’s Leani Ratri Oktila and Hikmat Ramdani 21-11, 19-21, 14-21.Born without a thumb on her left hand, Thulasimathi endured restricted movement, financial hardship and relentless teasing. Her daily-wage labourer father, Murugesan, nurtured her sporting ambitions, coaching her with his limited sports knowledge through gruelling routines despite limited resources.From inexpensive shoes and secondhand racquets to international podiums, the Kancheepuram girl’s journey continued. At Paris 2024, she became the first Indian woman to win Paralympic badminton silver, in the women’s singles SU5 category.India finished badminton with 16 medals — three gold, five silver and eight bronze — making it the country’s second-best medal-producing sport after athletics at the Asian Para Games.Nitesh started the gold rush, defeating compatriot Pramod Bhagat 21-18, 21-16 in men’s singles SL3. Debutant Naveen Sivakumar captured men’s singles SL4 gold, beating Indonesia’s Fredy Setiawan 21-9, 21-17.Bhagat settled for silver, while Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan earned silver in women’s singles SH6 after losing to China’s Li Fengmei 12-21, 13-21.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.