Bhavina Patel's entry into the final today is a chance to win a gold medal

Paralympics: Bhavina defeated China's world number three Zhang

The future gold medal match will be against China's world number one Zhou Ying from 7.15 am today.

TOKYO: Gujarat's international para-table tennis player Bhavina Patel advanced to the final of the Tokyo Paralympics with more than a milestone. With this she became the first Indian player in the history of Paralympic table tennis to reach the final.

In the semi-finals, Bhavina defeated World No. 3 Zhang Mio of China 3-2 to qualify for the gold medal bout. Now that national hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand's birthday is being celebrated across the country tomorrow, Bhavina Patel will take on China's world number one Zhou Ying in the final with the hope of winning a gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympics.

Bhavina Patel, 34, continued her impressive run in the Category 4 Women's Singles event, winning the semi-finals in just 34 minutes. After losing the first game, Bhavina won the second and third games rather than a hefty comeback. Mio won the fourth game to level the score at 2-2.

Eventually with the fifth and decisive game, Bhavina created a major upset by beating the Chinese player by a total score of 7-11, 11-7, 11-4, 9-11, 11-8. In the final, he will face the same player he lost in the first league match.

However, he is considered a strong contender for the gold medal considering the way he has shown confidence with his superb performance at the Tokyo Paralympics. This is Bhavina's first victory in the 12th match against former world number one Zhang Mio.

Bhavina defeated Great Britain's Shakalton after losing to Zhou Ying in the first group match at the Tokyo Paralympics. He then defeated Brazil's De Oliveira in the pre-quarterfinals. Also in the quarterfinals, he advanced to the semifinals with an easy 3-0 victory over Rio Paralympic gold medalist Serbia Rankovic.