Indian tennis player Radhika Yadav, 25, was fatally shot by her father while she was cooking in the kitchen of their home in Gurgaon, according to reports from Indian media. The shocking incident took place on Thursday morning, and authorities say she was shot three times.
Yadav, who lived with her family in Gurgaon, a major financial and tech hub near New Delhi, was rushed to a nearby hospital by relatives but did not survive her injuries. Her father, Deepak Yadav, was arrested shortly after the incident. Police reportedly seized his licensed firearm, and he confessed to the shooting, as reported by the Hindustan Times.
According to the International Tennis Federation, Radhika Yadav had not competed in a ranked match since March 2024. Although she never won a title in her professional career, she had opened her own tennis academy and, following an injury two years ago, had also expressed interest in becoming a social media influencer, India Today reported, citing police sources.
What did Yadav’s father say?
Deepak Yadav, 49, reportedly told authorities he was financially dependent on his daughter and had been deeply affected by comments and ridicule from people in his native village of Wazirabad, near Gurgaon.
“When I used to go to Wazirabad village to get milk, people used to taunt me, saying that I live off my daughter’s earnings. This troubled me a lot. Some people even questioned my daughter’s character. I told my daughter to close her tennis academy, but she refused,” he told the police, according to news channel NDTV.
The case has sparked renewed public outrage about violence against women in India, especially when it comes from within their own families.
