Chhattisgarh's ace shuttler Aakarshi Kashyap clinches gold at 36th National Games

Chhattisgarh's ace shuttler Aakarshi Kashyap clinched the gold medal in badminton at the 36th National Games being held in Gujarat.

Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and Youth Welfare and Sports Minister Umesh Patel congratulated Aakarshi for her outstanding achievement. They gave their best wishes to Aakarshi for her future endeavors. "I congratulate Aakarshi on winning gold. She has made Chhattisgarh proud at the 36th National Games", said Shri Baghel. Sports Minister Shri Patel said "She demonstrated her exceptional sports talent and achieved success, giving a tough time to her opponent. It is a proud moment for the state."

In the Badminton Womens Singles final event played at Deendayal Upadhyay Stadium in Surat, Akarshi defeated her opponent first seed Malvika Bansod of Maharashtra in a 44-minute match to clinch the winner's title. Aakarshi won the first set easily by 21-8. In the second set, Aakarshi managed to win the second gold medal for Chhattisgarh, defeating her opponent by 22-20. Earlier, Aakarshi had won the semifinals by defeating Tanya Hemant of Karnataka by 21-13, 21-15. In the 36th National Games held in Gujarat, the players of Chhattisgarh have won 7 medals so far. This includes two gold, three silver, and two bronze medals. It is worth mentioning that Amitesh Mishra won the gold medal in the skating event. All the office bearers of the State Badminton Association and Sports Director Smt. Shweta Sinha also congratulated Akarshi for winning the gold medal. Aakarshi has expressed gratitude to the Chhattisgarh Government, Sports and Youth Welfare Department, Chhattisgarh Olympic Association, and Chhattisgarh Badminton Association for their support.