JAIPUR: The phenomenal success ofRiyan Malhanis unfortunately a tale of India's loss turning into United Arab Emirates' (UAE) gain.The former Indian shuttler won a historic Under-15 boys singles bronze medal for the UAE at theBadmintonAsia U-17 & U-15 Junior Championships 2024 which concluded in Chengdu, China on Sunday.The 14-year-old Riyan, who represented Delhi and played all the national-level badminton tournaments till last year in India, opted to represent UAE in last week's Asian junior badminton championships and helped his new country win the solitary medal.Riyan was the top seed and went down in a pulsating semifinal against China's Qian Jia Xing. After toppling Riyan, the Chinese shuttler went on to win the gold medal.A former student of Delhi-based Dubai Gem Private School (DGPS), Riyan is regarded as one of the best players in the world in his age group. Thanks to his extraordinary prowess and impressive international ranking, Riyan was given the top seed in the U-15 boys singles category.In the U-15 boys doubles, Riyan and his UAE partner Adam Jeslin lost in the pre-quarters against their Indonesian opponents.Not long ago, Riyan was making waves in India and even clinched a silver medal at the All-India Sub-Junior U-13 Ranking badminton tournament held in Mumbai in Nov 2022.A month later, Riyan represented Delhi and did well by reaching the quarterfinals at the BAI U-13 National Championship in Lucknow. Riyan was among the top five in the Badminton Association of India (BAI) rankings in 2023.The Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy also recognised his potential, offering him a scholarship training programme. He also trained at thePullela GopichandBadminton Academy.However, Riyan, who was born in Dubai on May 16, 2010, decided to leave India and don the UAE colours.Riyan's father, Vipul Malhan, who was a former national-level shuttler, is a senior vice-president at Mashreq Bank, UAE. Having shifted to the Gulf last year, Riyan currently trains at Prime Star Academy in UAE.The BAI joint secretary, Omar Rashid, admitted that it was India's loss as Riyan opted to play for UAE. "He was doing very well in all the BAI-organised tournaments till last season. He is certainly a promising shuttler," said Rashid.
