{"id":23873,"date":"2026-06-30T18:24:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:24:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/?p=23873"},"modified":"2026-06-30T18:24:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:24:13","slug":"jammus-young-aces-clinch-bronze-at-north-zone-soft-tennis-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/2026\/06\/30\/jammus-young-aces-clinch-bronze-at-north-zone-soft-tennis-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"Jammu\u2019s young aces clinch Bronze at North Zone Soft Tennis Championship"},"content":{"rendered":"

Credit J&K Sports Council, Y&SS, JKASTA support<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

JAMMU, JUNE 30: Four young players from the Khelo India Soft Tennis Centre at MA Stadium, Jammu, have brought fresh pride to Jammu and Kashmir by clinching the bronze medal at the 3rd North Zone National Soft Tennis Championship held at Gindun Stadium, Srinagar, from June 26 to June 28, 2026.<\/p>\n

Madhavendra Singh Sambyal, Harikesh Dutt Sharma, Aditya Dutt Sharma and Vihan Parihar, as per an official statement, competed with the discipline and tactical sharpness of seasoned professionals, earning their place on the podium against some of the strongest teams from across North India.<\/p>\n

The quartet trains under Khelo India mentor and international soft tennis player Indu Bhushan Padha, whose coaching has been widely credited for Jammu\u2019s decade-long dominance in the sport at the Union Territory level.<\/p>\n

On the Srinagar courts, that training was evident in every rally, as the team combined composed doubles coordination with aggressive net play and smart point construction that belied their age. Their performance was not just a win for J&K but a clear signal that the structured, grassroots system being built through Khelo India Centres is producing athletes ready for the national stage.<\/p>\n

At the heart of this team is 17-year-old Madhvendra Singh Sambyal, already one of the most decorated young names in Indian soft tennis. His record reads like a blueprint for the aspiring athletes<\/p>\n

Madhvendra, at just 17, stormed to the Under-17 final at the National School Games in Dewas, MP, settling for silver after an \u201cintense title clash\u201d. His composure against the country\u2019s best put J&K \u201con the national soft tennis map\u201d. That silver came \u201cclose on the heels of his silver at the Senior National Championships in Srinagar\u201d, a rare feat for a school-level player competing with the adults. He\u2019s the reigning state gold medalist and top seed for J&K and previously won gold in Senior Category men\u2019s singles at the 9th UT Level Championship.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Alongside his sister Sidhani Singh, Madhvendra has earned selection to represent India at the 2nd Asian Junior Soft Tennis Championship, Feb 3\u20138, 2026, in Punjab. His athleticism isn\u2019t limited to soft tennis. In September 2025, the DPS Jammu student won gold in the Under-16 Boys Singles Pickleball Championship and qualified for Nationals in Bengaluru.<\/p>\n

Madhvendra credits his growth to his \u201cCoaches, the Soft Tennis Association, the J&K Sports Council and the Department of Youth Services and Sports\u201d. Tuesday, he\u2019s become \u201can inspiration for new generation of young athletes in Jammu and Kashmir to dream big and compete fearlessly\u201d.<\/p>\n

Harikesh Dutt Sharma has been on Jammu\u2019s radar since his Sub-Junior sweep at the 9th UT Championship, where he and Svadhi Sharma \u201cswept all three events\u201d, singles, doubles and mixed doubles. He also reached the U\/17 Boys final at the Inter District UT Level meet, facing teammate Madhvendra.<\/p>\n

Aditya Dutt Sharma and Vihan Parihar round out a squad where every player is battle-tested at district, UT and now zonal levels. Their bronze is not a finish line but it\u2019s a foundation.<\/p>\n

Jammu\u2019s clean sweep of 25 gold medals at the 9th UT Level Championship proved the region\u2019s depth. This North Zone bronze proves its breadth\u00a0 that J&K talent can travel, compete and medal beyond the UT.<\/p>\n

With this bronze, the team has laid a foundation that goes beyond a single tournament. They return now to MA Stadium to prepare for the national circuit, with Madhvendra setting his sights on the upcoming national and international championships this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Credit J&K Sports Council, Y&SS, JKASTA support JAMMU, JUNE 30: Four young players from the Khelo India Soft Tennis Centre at MA Stadium, Jammu, have brought fresh pride to Jammu and Kashmir by clinching the bronze medal at the 3rd North Zone National Soft Tennis Championship held at Gindun Stadium, Srinagar, from June 26 to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23874,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23873","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23873"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23873\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23875,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23873\/revisions\/23875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23873"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23873"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23873"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}