Tennis player Radhika Yadav murder: Fragile male ego couldn’t stand her freedom, she felt suffocated at home, says ‘bestie’; chilling revelations | Gurgaon News

GURGAON: Radhika Yadav felt suffocated at home and her father made her life miserable, a woman who identified herself as the murdered tennis player’s best friend said in an Instagram video she posted on Saturday.Also Read | ‘Maine kanya vadh kar diya hai’: What Radhika Yadav’s father said after killing her – investigation continuesRadhika (25) was murder on July 10 morning by her father Deepak, who pumped four bullets into her. The post by Himanshika Singh shone a light on the difficult equations in the household between Radhika and her parents, particularly her father Deepak.

In Himanshika’s narration, Deepak comes across as an ultra-conservative control freak who cared more about what people said than what his daughter wanted. Radhika, according to Himashika, was also shamed for wearing shorts, even though she was a tennis player. “She was killed not for love or fame, but because fragile male ego couldn’t stand her freedom. Let her story remind us: no woman should die for wanting to live on her own terms,” Himanshika, also a fellow tennis player, wrote on her video post, adding Radhika was not seeing anyone and was devoted to her tennis academy, but paid with her life for growing up in an orthodox family.“We started playing together in 2013 and travelled together for tournaments. We also played against each other, but I never saw her talking much with anyone. Her parents were always around her. She was my best friend and we were very close for the last eight years. I saw her body yesterday. My sole purpose behind this video is to tell people who exactly Radhika was. She was an international-level player, a kind soul, sweet and innocent, who was playing tennis for 18 years,” Himanshika said. Radhika, she added, “loved to get clicked and make videos.”She said her friend felt stifled at home as she was constantly under the parents’ vigil. “Radhika always had to tell her parents who she was talking to on the phone. Even when I video called her, the parents would come and inquire and she would have to show them the screen. I also used to visit her house. Her academy was just 50 metres away but she had a deadline to return home,” Himanshika said.She also posted a video of her and Radhika together, playing tennis, watching things on the phone together and driving. In the post accompanying the video, Himanshika wrote, “Radhika was murdered by her own father… He had made her life miserable for years with his controlling, constant criticism. In the end, he listened to so-called friends who were jealous of her success. She worked so hard in her tennis career and even built her own academy. She was doing so well for herself. But they couldn’t stand to see her independent. They shamed her for wearing shorts, for talking to boys, for living on her own terms. She was rushed to the hospital, but she didn’t make it. Rest in peace.”Police are, meanwhile, looking into screenshots of WhatsApp conversations between Radhika and Ajay Yadav, one of her coaches, that emerged on Saturday. In one chat from Oct 2024, she purportedly tells Ajay she wants to get out of the house for some time and live independently. “Oct Nov Dec kuch bhi mereko nikalna hai idhar se thode time ke liye (I want to get away from here for some time)” says a message attributed to her.

Seen in the light of revelations by Himanshika, these too suggest Radhika was feeling suffocated. Police said they were verifying the authenticity of the messages. The chats revealed Radhika’s desire to spend some time abroad and pursue some courses. In one chat attributed to her, she writes, “Gharwale to theek hai lekin thode time rehna hai independently. Wanna enjoy life, idhar kaafi restrictions hai. Baki dekho aim toh yeh hee hai thode bohot courses karle (Family members are fine but I want to live independently for a while. There are a lot of restrictions here. The aim is to do some courses)”A message prior to this one indicates she was considering Australia or Dubai. “China toh dekho khana peena will be an issue Dubai Australia waghera theek hai..Australia family hai Dubai me aap ho (Food will be an issue in China but Dubai and Australia will be fine as I have family in Australia and you are there in Dubai)” she purportedly writes. In another message, she indicates a discussion with her father on the subject, but the context is not clear. “But fir maine papa se baat ki toh mana kar rahe they sab sunke ki koi point mahi hai kitne hee bacchenge paise (He heard me out and said there is no point, it won’t save much money)” says the message.In a message dated May 11 this year, the coach purportedly asks her, “Tumne start kiya hai? (Did you start?)” To which Radhika’s purported reply is, “Yes bhaiya”. It appears the coach was referring to the tennis coaching she had started near her house.