Badminton
Rutuparna Panda, Swetaparna Panda first sister duo from India to win int'l title
Sisters from Odisha, Rutuparna and Swetaparna Panda, have won the gold medal at the BWF Tajikistan International Series 2023.
Swetaparna and Rutuparna Panda with the gold medals from the BWF Tajikistan International Series
Badminton sisters Rutuparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda won the gold medal in women’s doubles at the BWF Tajikistan International Series 2023 on Friday. They are the first ever Indian sister duo to win an international title in badminton.
Rutaparna, 24, and Swetaparna, 18, won the final in just 20 minutes, beating the Azerbaijan pair of Era Maftuha and Hajar Nuriyeva 21-3, 21-7.
Ranked 77th in the world in women's doubles, Rutuparna and Swetaparna are the fourth highest ranked Indian pair after Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand, Ashwini Bhatt/Shikha Gautam and Ashwini Ponappa/Tanisha Crasto
It was only last year that the sisters started playing together after Rutaparna, who would partner with Tanisha Crasto earlier, moving out of the Gopichand Academy in Hyderabad to partner her teenaged sister instead.
Rutuparna and Swetaparna Panda celebrate after the final
The sisters have been training at the indoor hall constructed six years ago by their father near their house in Cuttack. From being ranked 570th in the world when they started playing as a duo last year, they have now jumped to 77th.
READ | Panda sisters 2.0: How Rutaparna and Swetaparna are fulfilling their father's 'Dangal' dreams
BWF International Series is a grade 3 and level 2 tournament part of Continental Circuit of BWF tournaments along with International Challenge (level 1) and Future Series (level 3), sanctioned by Badminton World Federation (BWF).
In terms of world ranking points, these tournaments are ranked after World Championship, World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, Super 100 and International Challenge.
