Sukant Kadam. Photo: X/SukantKadam. Sukant Kadam. Photo: X/SukantKadam. 
Indian para-shuttler Sukant Kadam was off to a winning star despite trailing after the opening game as he defeated Malaysia's MHS Amin Burhanuddin in the men's singles SL4 group play stage - group B match on Thursday to begin his maiden Paralympics campaign with a hard fought win. (Full Coverage | More Sports News)
Sukant did not start well and went down in the first game 17-21. He managed to put a poor start behind, bouncing back strongly in the second game. He clinched the second game with a score of 21-15 setting the match nicely for the third set.
The decisive set went right down to the wire as both Sukant and Burhanuddin gave their best to find their way into the second round. In the third set, the Malyasian played some great shots to take the lead, but the spirited Indian fought back hard and saved 3 match points to secure an incredible win.
The final score read 17-21 21-15 22-20 in the favour of Sukant.
After the win, an ecstatic Sukant expressed his joy, saying, "Playing at this level, with the crowd cheering for us, is fantastic! I was determined to give it my all, with 100% speed and never giving up. We were prepared for this situation and knew how to handle the pressure and the crowd."
This victory sets the tone for a promising campaign at the Paris Paralympics 2024.
Tokyo Paralympics silver medalist Suhas Yathiraj and Tarun also notched up contrasting wins in their respective opening men’s singles SL4 group matches.ph6