Malvika in India senior badminton team for Asia meet
30 Jan 2020 09:38:22
Malvika Bansod
By Anupam Soni :
IN A giant leap, young city shuttler Malvika Bansod has made it to the Indian squad that will participate in the Badminton Asia Team Championships to be played at Manila from February 11-16. The ace player, who is just 18 years old, has been rewarded for her consistent effort in debut year in senior category. Malvika entered the senior category on January 1, 2020 and that makes it a very big achievement for her to be a part of such a prestigious event representing her country. Malvika, who won silver medal in women’s singles at All India Senior Selection Tournament at Goa, has had a very good past six months.
She picked gold in the Maldives International Future Series and repeated her show with another top finish in Nepal International Challenge. She pocketed a bronze in Bahrain International Challenge recently. Malvika, who was also honoured with District Sports Awards on Republic Day, was a happy soul. “I am delighted to be representing India in the senior category. It’s a dream come true moment for me. I had worked very hard to give very consistent performance without a break in junior and senior nationals as well as at international level the entire last year.
It will be a great learning experience for me to perform at this stage and also to prepare for future. God has been very kind to me and has blessed my hard work,” said the India No 2 in women’s singles senior category while talking to ‘The Hitavada’ on Wednesday. Malvika added, “I want to thank my coach Sanjay Mishra sir, Mr Arun Lakhani, Mr Mangesh Kashikar, Maharashtra Badminton Association (MBA), Nagpur District Badminton Association (NDBA) and Shivaji Science College for the incredible support and encouragement.” Other members of the Indian women team are — Ashwini Bhat, Ashmita Chaliha, Shikha Gautam, Aakarshi Kahsyap, K Maneesha, Rutaparna Panda and Gayatri Pullela Gopichand. The Indian men’s team includes the likes of Kidambi Srikanth HS Prannoy, B Sai Praneeth B and Lakshya Sen among others.