Tennis Player Killed: Case Points to Patriarchy, Honour and Shame Norms

Success, Visibility and Autonomy Made Radhika Yadav a Target Within Her Own Home

July 13, 2025

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A national-level tennis player and coach, Radhika Yadav, was reportedly shot dead in her Gurugram residence on 10 July. Her father, Deepak Yadav, has been arrested in connection with the incident and remains in judicial custody. Media reports indicate that the case is linked to three entrenched social values that continue to deprive girls and women in India of dignity and agency: the persistence of patriarchal authority, the prioritisation of family reputation over the welfare of daughters, and the cultural construction of the female body as a source of shame.

Radhika, who was 25 years old at the time of her death, began playing tennis in primary school and went on to represent Haryana in national and international tournaments. She reached a national doubles ranking of 113 and later established her own tennis academy, through which she earned a living as a professional coach. Her growing economic independence and visibility in public sporting spaces marked a significant departure from traditional gender roles. 

According to police accounts and media reports, on the morning of 10 July, there was a confrontation in the household regarding her continued operation of the tennis academy. She was shot four times inside the kitchen. Radhika was taken to hospital by her uncle, where she was declared dead. Deepak Yadav was arrested and is being investigated.

The father has reportedly asked the police to write the FIR in such a manner that it would lead to a death sentence, according to The Indian Express.

Statements attributed to neighbours and family members suggest that Radhika’s increasing independence and financial contribution to the household had become a source of tension, as reported by News18. According to some reports, Deepak Yadav had previously expressed discomfort over community remarks about the household depending on his daughter’s income. Friends of Radhika also recalled that she had frequently faced disapproval for wearing sports attire, particularly shorts, during and after tennis practice.

This case must be analysed within the framework of patriarchal social structures, in which male authority is expected to define and delimit the roles of women in both private and public life. When a daughter occupies a position of financial autonomy and public leadership, it can disrupt conventional expectations of male control. Within such a structure, the perception of having lost status or authority may be experienced as a social humiliation.

The circumstances surrounding Radhika’s death suggest how structural expectations of patriarchal dominance can translate into intense familial conflict.

Another critical factor is the continuing centrality of family reputation in determining the perceived legitimacy of women’s choices. The idea that a daughter’s visibility, earnings or attire can damage family honour persists in many Indian contexts. Even professional success, when not aligned with traditional norms, can provoke anxiety about public image. If neighbours are understood to be judging a household based on the daughter’s actions or independence, the family may experience this as moral condemnation. This social pressure often results in women being monitored and disciplined in ways that prioritise appearances over wellbeing.

The belief that the female body is a source of shame is also evident in this case. Radhika’s participation in sport required her to wear functional athletic clothing. However, her choice of attire became a repeated point of contention within her social environment. This is consistent with a cultural pattern in which women’s bodies are treated as inherently shameful and in need of concealment. The presence of the female body in public space, particularly when not modestly dressed by prevailing standards, is interpreted by many as inappropriate or provocative. This perspective shifts attention away from the functionality of dress and reduces women’s choices to moral statements.

When women’s bodies are viewed through a lens of shame, they are subjected to constant scrutiny, and their movement through public space becomes conditional on conformity. This perception undermines autonomy and enables others to exert social and psychological control, often with severe consequences. The regulation of attire, appearance and presence becomes a community project, enforced through gossip, rebuke, and at times coercion.

The reported statement by the accused that he wishes to be sentenced to death is notable. It suggests not only remorse but also an internalisation of the very values that contributed to the conflict. The expression “kanya vadh,” which was used by the accused himself during interrogation by police, is deeply telling. The term literally means “daughter-killing” in Sanskrit and is associated with religious or sacrificial connotations in historical texts. In this context, its use reflects a cultural logic in which the killing of a daughter is portrayed – however mistakenly – as an act of moral correction or honour-restoration, rather than as a punishable crime.

The fact that the same individual who is accused of the killing reportedly demanded the harshest possible punishment for himself points to the internal contradiction of the values at play. Social norms that demand control, obedience and honour may compel a person to act in extreme ways, but once the act is committed, they offer no moral closure – only remorse.

This case is part of a pattern in which structural violence is misrecognised as individual tragedy. Women’s mobility, economic participation and visibility continue to be governed by unwritten rules that are socially enforced and sometimes violently upheld. The result is a cycle in which gendered expectations create pressure, resistance leads to conflict and the absence of institutional intervention allows escalation.

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