Asian Para Games 2026: Bhavina Patel, Sonalben Patel win bronze in table tennis

India's Bhavina Patel and Sonalben Patel won bronze medals in women's singles table tennis at the Asian Para Games 2026 on Tuesday. Both players lost their respective semi-final matches but finished on the podium.Bhavina lost 7-11, 5-11, 7-11 to China's Zhang Bian in the Class 4-5 semi-final. Sonalben went down 7-11, 5-11, 6-11 against South Korea's Jiyu Yoon in the Class 3 semi-final.Bhavina Patel wins second successive bronzeBhavina, a former Paralympics silver medallist and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, suffered a straight-games defeat against Zhang, an eight-time Paralympic gold medallist.The 39-year-old from Gujarat won silver at the 2018 Asian Para Games and bronze at the 2022 edition. Her latest medal gives her a second successive bronze at the continental event.Zhang, 40, had won silver at the previous Asian Para Games.The Class 4-5 category is for wheelchair athletes with lower-limb impairments who have good upper-body control.Sonalben Patel goes down to defending championSonalben could not get past defending champion Jiyu Yoon in the Class 3 semi-final. The South Korean, a three-time Paralympic medallist, won the match in straight games.Sonalben had earlier won silver in doubles at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta.The Class 3 category is for wheelchair athletes who have limited trunk control and poor sitting balance but normal or near-normal arm and hand function.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.