New Delhi, Nov. 5 -- Tanvi Patri assured herself a medal at the 2026 Youth Olympics after the 15-year-old from Odisha became the first Indian badminton player to reach the women's singles final in Dakar, Senegal on Wednesday. The young Indian produced a spirited show to defeat Japanese Yuzuno Watanabe, 21-14, 11-21, 21-19 in a thrilling three-game semi-final that lasted 54 minutes.

Tanvi's run to the final marks another milestone for Indian badminton at the Youth Olympics. Earlier in 2010, HS Prannoy won silver at the inaugural edition in Singapore, while Lakshya Sen finished runner-up in Buenos Aires in 2018. Aditya Joshi had reached the boys' singles semi-finals in 2014.

But things won't easy for Tanvi, as the Asian U17 champion will ...