Horsens (Denmark): India went down 2-3 to China in their final Group A tie of the Thomas Cup Finals, despite fighting comeback wins from Ayush Shetty and HS Prannoy here on Wednesday.
The 2022 champions India, who have already sealed their quarterfinal spot, were on the back foot after Lakshya Sen and the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty lost close encounters to concede a 0-2 lead.
Under pressure, Ayush delivered, recovering from a game down to beat Weng Hong Yang 17-21, 21-13, 21-15 in the second singles and reduce the margin.
It came down to the second doubles match but the pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun couldn’t get across He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu, losing 17-21 13-21 as China took an unassailable 3-1 lead.
Prannoy then rallied from a game down to beat Lu Guang Zu 20-22, 21-19, 21-11 in the third singles to reduce the margin of the defeat.
Lakshya, a 2021 world championships bronze medallist, had beaten world No. 7 Li Shi Feng en route to a runner-up finish at the All England Championships last month but he could not replicate that form in the decider, going down 19-21 21-8 12-21 in the first singles.
World No. 4 pair of Satwik and Chirag also put up a gallant fight, saving five match points before losing 13-21 21-13 24-26 to Paris Olympics silver medallists Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang.
Following the loss, India finished second in Group A and are likely to face 2014 winners Japan in the quarterfinals. Japan topped Group B.
Ayush vs Weng
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In the opening game, Ayush stayed in touch early but from 17-17, Weng pulled away, sealing the opening game when the Indian hit the net.
The Indian responded aggressively after the change of ends, racing to 7-1 and stretching it to 14-7 with a barrage of smashes. He brought up seven game points with a sharp cross-court hit and converted it with a delicate net finish.
In the decider, Ayush surged to 8-4, showing sharper anticipation and court coverage, even diving to keep rallies alive. Weng clawed back to 9-8 and then 10-10, but a superb push at the backline gave Ayush the edge at the interval.
Reading his opponent well, Ayush moved to 17-13 before sealing it in style, earning five match points with a deceptive return. Weng eventually smashed long as Ayush wrapped up a gritty comeback to keep India alive.
“I think I really enjoyed that. It was really good. It’s my first Thomas Cup. The goal was to win. But yeah, unfortunately it was two close games. But happy to get the point for the team,” he said.
“The josh is really high. I mean, we really believe that we can go all the way. I think the team believes, I believe it. I think we can do it.”
Lakshya vs Li
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Lagging behind 3-6, Lakshya mixed his attack with a cross-court slice and a sharp smash to claw back but Li capitalised on a series of weak lifts to move ahead 10-8 and carry a slender advantage into the break.
Lakshya erased the deficit but both players were locked at 19-19 before Li produced two decisive points to take the opening game.
The second game was a one-way traffic as Lakshya raced to 5-0 and then 11-2, aided by a string of unforced errors from Li. The Indian maintained relentless pressure to force a decider.
In the third game, Lakshya trailed 1-4 but recovered to 7-7. But repeated errors allowed Li to regain control. The Chinese shuttler stretched the lead to 17-12 and soon earned eight match points, converting with a clinical cross-court smash.
Prannoy vs Lu
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Prannoy was in control for most of the opening game but a sudden lapse saw him squander four game points, allowing Lu Guang Zu to snatch it.
Stung, the Indian responded with intent, racing to an 11-6 lead at the break with a powerful straight smash. Lu, however, tightened his game, drawing level at 12-12 before both players traded blows to stay locked at 19-19.
A fortunate net cord gave Prannoy a game point, which he converted with a superb defensive return to force the decider.
In the final game, Prannoy surged 4-0 ahead but Lu again fought back to 6-6. The Indian regained control to lead by three points at the interval and then took charge after the change of ends, dominating the rallies and unleashing sharp cross-court smashes to open up a 15-8 gap.
Lu faltered under pressure, spraying errors, as Prannoy earned a flurry of match points and sealed it comfortably when the Chinese shuttler went long.
