The 2025 ITTF Asian Para Championship was held in Beijing, China, from October 14 to October 19. On Sunday, October 19, India’s duo of Sonalben Patel and Rajalakshmi Shankar Janardhanamurthy won the country’s first-ever doubles medal in the women’s doubles class of WD5.
The duo clinched the bronze medal after finishing third in their single round-robin group after defeating Kazakhstan’s duo of Alexendra Stepanova and Yakaterina Fedorenko. The duo finished with 2 wins and 2 defeats.
Another Indian duo of Ekta Bhyan and Ushabahen Ramjibhai Rathod finished 4th in the tournament. They lost their opening match against Sonalben and Rajalakshmi by 3-1.
Starting off strong, the pair of Sonalben and Rajalakshmi lost two of the next matches straight against the South Korean and Thai pairs.
But then, they returned to the winning form and toppled them in a must-win match to confirm their medal.
For Sonalben, this was her second medal of the tournament. Earlier, she won another bronze medal in the women’s singles class 3 category.
India finished the tournament with five bronze medals, their maximum-ever win in any of the tournament editions.
Indian medallist at the 2025 ITTF Asian Para Championships
Women’s event
· Sonalben Patel – Bronze medal in Women’s Singles Class 3
· Ekta Bhyan – Bronze in Women’s Singles Class 1
· Sonalben-Rajalakshmi – Bronze in Women’s Doubles Class WD5
Men’s event
· Sandeep Dangi – Bronze medal in Men’s Singles Class 1
· Jehan Madan – Bronze in Men’s Singles Class 1
About Sonalben Patel
Sonalben Patel is an Indian para-table tennis player who competes in the Class 3 category. She was born in Viramgam, Gujarat, and got diagnosed with polio as a six-month-old. She was severely affected and got disabled with both her hands and legs. But it didn’t stop her from creating her prominence and leading her life with grit and determination to create the successful career in sports that she has achieved today.
Sonalben started her professional career with the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, participating in the wheelchair class 3 para table tennis, where she lost to South Korea’s Lee Mi Gyu.
Her next appearance followed in the 2022 FA40 Egypt Para Open, where she won two golds and a bronze medal. Her other participation includes the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham. In the event, she won a bronze medal in the women’s single event, defeating the United Kingdom’s Sue Bailey by 3-0.
Her journey is a source of inspiration for all the para-athletes out there trying to create their identity and career in sports.
