4th National Para Badminton Championship: Pramod Bhagat, Manoj Sarkar win their respective matches

2021 Paralympics gold medalist Pramod Bhagat kickstarted his campaign at the ongoing 4th National Para Badminton Championship in Bhubaneswar on Saturday, December 25.

Playing in front of the home crowd, Pramod pulled off an easy win against Chandra Prakash in the men's singles SL3 category at the Railway Indoor Stadium. He defeated Prakash in straight-sets (21-12, 21-18).

The three-day Para Badminton tournament is underway with over 500 athletes competing. The tournament got underway on December 24 and will conclude on 26.

Apart from Pramod, bronze medallist Manoj Sarkar also won his first game in the men's singles SL3 category on Saturday.

Pramod Bhagat elated to experience his home crowd

Pramod Bhagat has played in front of a crowd several times, but playing in front of the home crowd is always a special feeling for any athlete. The local boy relished the opportunity and stated that it was a new experience.

"Feels nice to be back home and playing, this is my first match on my home ground in Odisha. This was a new experience, I had played across the world but it was something different when I walked out to play today in front of my local crowd," said Pramod Bhagat.

While playing his first match, Pramod gave away a few points to the opponent initially. Upon being asked about the same, the 33-year-old stated that he was trying to get into the groove since it was his first match in the tournament.

"I was just getting into the groove hence in that process I lost some points and also since it was my first match here in the tournament, I was getting a hang of it. But then I got the momentum in the second half of the second set to make sure I win the game," said Pramod to ANI.