Yashaswini Gorpade wins U-19 girls singles bronze medal at Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis
At the Asian Junior and Cadet Table Tennis Tournament on Tuesday, young Indian paddler Yashaswini Gorpade became the first Indian to take home a medal in the U19 girls' singles category. The 16-year-old lost against Yi Chen of China 0-4 in the semifinals, earning the bronze medal.
Although Gorpade put up a valiant fight in the opening set before falling 11-13, once Chen established her groove, Gorpade was no match for her. Chen advanced to the final by winning the following three sets, 11-9, 11-4, and 11-3, however, she was defeated by Yuxuan Qin, a fellow countrywoman, to take home the trophy.
Yashaswini Gorpade won the Junior girls' singles championship in the age-group continental competition with her bronze-medal performance, making her the first Indian to do so. Additionally, she succeeded Sathiyan Gnanasekaran as the only other Indian to win a U19 singles medal in the Asian Junior and Cadet Championships.
Prior to this effort by Gorpade, G Sathiyan had won the bronze medal in 2010, which was about 12 years ago. At the Asian Junior and Cadet Championships earlier in the day, Yashaswini and Payas Jain won India's first-ever mixed doubles gold medal. To win the championship, the Indian team defeated the Chinese team 3-2.