Krishna Nagar exclusive: Para-shuttler on hunt for second Paralympic gold — 'My game has improved since Tokyo'

The Indian badminton team was in for a disappointment in the Paris Olympics recently, failing to win a single medal for the first time since Beijing 2008, with two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, as well as Lakshya Sen and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, falling short of the podium.

Another Indian badminton team is off to Paris for a global event along with athletes in several other disciplines and categories, and they sure have a better shot at returning home with a medal or two in their collection.

Krishna Nagar was among the five Indian gold medallists at the Tokyo Paralympics that had taken place three years ago, finishing on top of the podium in his maiden appearance. And he wasn’t the only Indian to do so, with Pramod Bhagat also winning gold, albeit in another category.

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And given the kind of form that he has been in recent months, Nagar certainly appears to be a strong favourite not just for another Paralympic medal, but for a second consecutive gold medal. Nagar, after all, has medalled in two major events in the last year, which certainly highlights the fact that his heroics in Tokyo were by no means a one-off.

“Won a couple of medals after the Tokyo gold as well, Asian Games (2023, silver) as well as World Championships (2024, gold). Right now, the confidence is there, my game has also improved since then. So, the confidence of winning another medal is there, and my aim is to deliver my best,” Nagar said in an exclusive interaction with Firstpost ahead of the Paris Paralympics, which gets underway on Wednesday, 28 August.

Paralympics: Dates, history, Indian athletes, list of sports and all you need to know

The Tokyo gold was by no means his first major feat as a para-shuttler. Nagar’s first big moment came in the Asian Para Games in Jakarta six years ago when he won bronze in men’s singles. That was followed by a bronze in the World Championships in Basel the following year along with a silver in men’s doubles along with Raja Magotra.

Nothing, however, comes quite close to the feeling of wearing a Paralympic medal around one’s neck, especially if it happens to be gold. And for Nagar, it certainly has been a life-altering experience.

“Life totally changed after winning gold at the Tokyo Paralympics, because people didn’t have much of an idea about para-badminton, or para-athletes and para Games for that matter. But that has changed since the Tokyo Games. Para-badminton suddenly has a lot more following and awareness in the country,” Nagar added during the conversation.

Read | India's Paralympics history: Edition-wise performance and full list of medal winners

The 25-year-old from Jaipur, Rajasthan, also credited government support — both from the Centre as well as from the state government — for their support for para-athletes and para-sports which has led to a dramatic rise in the country’s fortunes in the Paralympics, resulting in a whopping 19 medals in Tokyo.

“Credit must also be given to the governments — both Centre as well as the state governments — for their support both during the Tokyo Paralympics as well as since then. Our PM sir is also supporting us all the way. We had an interaction with the PM just a few days back, and he had offered us a lot of motivation,” Nagar added.

Nagar had been the only player competing in the men’s SH6 category in the Tokyo Games three years ago. This time, however, he is one of two Indian para-shuttlers in that category — the other being Sivarajan Solaimalai.

On the prospect of an all-Indian clash in Paris with Sivarajan — much like Lakshya and HS Prannoy in the Olympics Round of 16 — Nagar felt it all depended on the draw.

“It is quite possible. It depends on the kind of draw that we get at the Paralympic Games,” Nagar said.

“I have played with Sivarajan a number of times in the past and he is also my doubles partner. He is a good player, and has also been training hard for the Games. I also appreciate the fact that he is playing two events in Paris, and I am confident he will put up a good show.

“I certainly hope for an all-Indian final in the SH6 category,” he added.

Pramod ‘bhaiya’ my favourite senior

The Indian para-badminton team had been dealt a massive blow before the Paralympics with Tokyo gold medallist Pramod Bhagat getting banned for 18 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) due to multiple whereabouts failures within the framework of BWF’s anti-doping regulations.

While Nagar admitted Bhagat’s absence was a massive blow to the Indian team given he was a “sure-shot” medallist, he opened up on the influence that Bhagat and other seniors within the Indian team had on him in his journey so far.

“When you talk about Pramod ‘bhaiya’, you know for a fact that he is a sure-shot medallist. What has happened is his personal matter, and I wouldn’t want to get into that. But yet, his absence certainly has been detrimental for the Indian team,” Nagar said.

“For me, he is my best senior. I have spent a lot of time with him. Whenever we travel for a tournament, we mostly stay together. Me, Pramod Bhagat, Sukant Kadam, Tarun Dhillon, Nitesh Kumar, we all stay together. I happen to be the junior-most in the group, and all the seniors are quite supportive and help me out from time to time, and I keep learning a lot of things from them.

“So it’s a good thing for me that I have so many mentors within the Indian team,” he signed off.