Rejected for a job due to her disability, para-paddler Bhavina Patel has etched her name in Paralympics history

Bhavina Patel was a calm soul despite creating history at the Tokyo Paralympics. She qualified for the table tennis final on Saturday at the Tokyo Metropolitan Arena. She beat World No.3 Miao Zhang of China 3-2. It was her first win against the Chinese paddler which came at the right time.

Throughout the five-set game, Bhavina Patel never looked out of place. She lost the first set but then won two consecutive ones to put pressure on Zhang. What stood out the most was how the Indian used her water break to compose herself.

While Zhang’s coach was being animated and instructing the Chinese what to do, the Indian duo just decided to sit still and breathe. Bhavina Patel would just start meditating, while her coach would just observe her.

Zhang did fightback, winning the fourth set and almost won the fifth one. However, the Indian para-paddler played brilliantly and took the break at 9-8 (India lead). It proved to be the right decision as this broke China’s momentum and Bhavina Patel clinched victory in the thriller.

She etched her name in history by becoming the first para-table tennis player to enter the Paralympics finals. However, it has not been an easy journey for Bhavina Patel.

Bhavina Patel’s journey to the top

Bhavina Patel was not born with a disability but things changed when she was just 12 months old. Her family discovered that she was suffering from poliomyelitis.

As she grew up, she started her studies in a normal school in the village itself. Her parents helped her and supported her to get an education. Then in fourth grade, her family took her to Vishakapatnam, Andhra Pradesh for surgery.

However, Bhavina Patel was negligent and did not do proper rehabilitation and exercise. This brought her back to square one. She studied till class 12 in her village.

She wanted to be a teacher but was rejected for an interview because of her physical disability. This was when Bhavina Patel’s father, Hasmukhbhai Patel, came across an advertisement from the Blind People’s Association (BPA) in 2004. He enrolled her for an ITI course at an award-winning institution for the specially-abled in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

Bhavina Patel did the course under the supervision of Tejalben Lakhia. She also pursued her graduation through correspondence from Gujarat University. During this time, she was extremely active in sports. Lakhia saw her interest and got her in touch with Lalan Doshi.

It was Lakhia and Doshi who motivated her to get involved in physical activities for fitness.

Bhavina Patel begins her sporting career

She started her sports career with the aim to remain fit but gradually it became her passion. She started playing table tennis professionally and began taking part in competitions. She won her first para-table tennis gold medal at the nationals in Bengaluru.

After making a name at the national level, she started making her name on the international stage. Bhavina Patel’s first foreign competition was in Jordan, where she returned empty-handed. But this did not disappoint her. Instead, she worked harder and kept competing to gain experience.

In 2011, she won her first international medal (silver) at the Thailand Open. She then created history in 2013 by winning silver at the Asian Regional Championships. The Gujarat-born won her first gold in Bangkok in 2019.

She married Nikul Patel in 2017. Her husband is a national level cricketer.