New Delhi: The young women’s pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continued India’s medal run at the World Championships, but the men’s doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty missed out on a third medal after losing in the quarterfinals here on Friday.
Treesa, who has spent several weeks nursing her ankle after suffering an injury in April, combined with Gayatri to produce a performance of a lifetime and see off the world No. 4 Chinese pair of Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian 16-21 21-15 21-13.
The win took them to the semifinals and ensured at least a bronze medal.
India last claimed a BWF World Championships medal in women’s doubles in 2011, when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won bronze in London. It was also the year when the country began its run of winning a medal at every edition of the prestigious tournament, with Treesa and Gayatri continuing the trend.
However, it turned out to be a bad day for world No. 5 Satwik and Chirag as they went down 18-21 9-21 in just 36 minutes against China’s world No. 3 Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in the men’s doubles quarterfinals.
While it was the end of the road for Satwik and Chirag, another top Chinese pair stands in the way of Treesa and Gayatri’s place in the final.
“I think just being calm and patient and just being in the present moment, that is actually what we need to do to score points against them. That kind of mindset was there. I think that really worked,” said Gayatri, who was overwhelmed with emotion after the win as she and her partner hugged chief coach Pullela Gopichand.
Treesa and Gayatri, who have plummeted to world No. 39 from world No. 9 following injuries and a lack of form, will face the world No. 1 Chinese pair of Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning next.
“I think right now, just processing this one, we are going to the semi-finals and being on the podium. But it’s not finished yet. This is not the ending. We came here with a goal,” said Treesa, who, along with Gayatri, had reached the All England Open semi-finals in 2022 and 2023.
Women’s doubles quarterfinal
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The Indians flipped the script after entering the match with a 0-3 head-to-head record against Jia Yi Fan, a Paris Olympics gold medallist, and Zhang Shu Xian.
Treesa and Gayatri did not have a good start, falling behind 1-6 early on, but fought their way back to 8-9 with six successive points before the Chinese entered the interval with a three-point advantage.
Despite some intense fight, including several intense net battles, it was Zhang and Jia, who managed to move to 17-14 before closing out the opening game.
After the change of sides, Zhang and Jia carried their momentum, opening up a 5-1 lead and then moving to 10-7. But the Indians turned the tables to move ahead 13-10. The contest remained tight, with the score reaching 15-14 at one stage.
The Indians then produced another decisive burst to open up a 19-14 lead and roar back into the contest.
In the decider, Treesa and Gayatri came out firing, surging to an 11-5 lead before extending it to 14-7 with a flurry of points that the Chinese simply could not negotiate.
There were a few nervous moments, with Treesa sending one shot into the net and Gayatri committing a service error. But the Chinese could not capitalise. Instead, they began to wilt under pressure, making a series of unforced errors at the net as the home favourites raced to a 17-9 lead.
Gayatri’s fierce flat exchanges with Jia and Zhang were one of the highlights of the match. The experienced Chinese pair began to crumble under the relentless pressure. At 18-9, they sent another shot wide. The Indians earned nine match points when Jia and Zhang once again failed to negotiate a shot and found the net.
Jia and Zhang saved two match points but then sprayed another shot wide. Treesa fell flat on the court in celebration, while Gayatri looked in disbelief as the Indians completed a stunning comeback.
Treesa and Gayatri won a Commonwealth Games bronze in 2022 and broke into the top 10 at the start of last year.
However, early this year, Treesa suffered an ankle injury while training ahead of the Asia Badminton Championships and Uber Cup.
After a gruelling rehabilitation, Treesa and Gayatri returned at the Indonesia Open and then played at the US Open before winning the Philippine International Challenge earlier this month.
Men’s doubles quarterfinal
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Playing only their second match after receiving a first-round bye and a second-round walkover, the world No. 5 Indians, who have won bronze medals at the 2022 and 2025 editions, lacked the required sharpness.
Satwik and Chirag were going toe-to-toe with the Chinese as the two pairs engaged in fierce rallies, moving together at 4-4 to 10-10 before the Indians held a one-point cushion at the break.
Satwik and Chirag moved to 15-12 and then prevailed in a flat exchange to reach 16-14. However, it became 18-18 after Satwik sprayed a shot wide. However, the Indians committed a series of errors to allow the Chinese to wrap up the first game.
The Indians faded in the second game, falling 4-9. Wang and Liang entered the break with a healthy 11-5 lead before extending to 15-7 lead in no time. Satwik then hit the net as the score moved to 17-9. The Chinese were fired up while the Indians’ hopes wavered as Satwik’s lift went into the net.
