On 18 October, fencer CA Bhavani Devi won a silver medal in the Women’s Saber event at the Istanbul Satellite Tournament. In the final 12:15, she narrowly lost to Turkish world number 12 Nisanur Erbil. Before that, she beat Greek world number 5 Despina Georgiadou 15:13 in the semi-finals.
CA Bhavani Devi’s achievements have received little media attention. The Indian champions’ win was lost amid Virat Kohli’s madness and Rohit Sharma’s ODI comeback the next day.
However, Anand Mahindra has now congratulated CA Bhavani Devi, calling her “our brightest hope in the sport”.
In a post on Twitter (now X), Anand Mahindra says that Bhavani Devi’s success reminds him of his brief experience with fencing during his undergraduate studies in the US. In the 1970s, opportunities for fencing in India were rare, Mahindra said. This sparked his interest in the sport.
“I chose the saber because the higher students were usually advised to choose foil or épée, where range was more important. The origin of the saber lies in equestrian combat where soldiers on horseback slashed each other as they charged, which explains the aggressive pace of the sport,” the billionaire wrote.
“To my delight, I even won the first saber fencing competition for freshman (intramural = recreational, within the college). But I had no pretensions or ambitions to travel further: My victory was due more to enthusiasm than to talent!” he continued.
“And perhaps the very qualities that define saber fencing, namely timing, balance, and controlled aggression, will serve well in the arena of business competition?” added Anand Mahindra.
Reaction on social networks
One social media user commented, “It always inspires me to see Indians excel beyond cricket, kudos to Bhavani Devi for putting fencing on the map!”
“Both fencing and the corporate world have the same rule: Strike first, smile later,” another user wrote.
Another user wrote: “Fencing and commerce share this rhythm of precision and restraint. Success in both is not about constantly attacking; it’s about knowing when to strike and when to balance. The rise of Bhavani Devi captures this perfectly.”
“Your fencing story shows that passion and controlled aggression are not just for sport, but also shape success in life and business,” came another.
