Industry Odisha Bureau, Aug 21: Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand ended India’s 15-year wait for a World Championships medal in women’s doubles after producing a remarkable comeback victory over China’s Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian in the quarterfinals in BWF World Championships on Friday.
The unseeded Indian pair recovered from losing the opening game to beat their Chinese opponents 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 in under 70 minutes. The victory secured their place in the semi finals and guaranteed India at least a bronze medal in the event.
The achievement is particularly significant for Indian Women’s doubles badminton. The country’s last World Championships medal in the discipline came in 2011. This was when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won bronze in London.
Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand responded strongly after a slow start. The Indians improved their attacking game in the second and third games. They found greater success with their smashes while also becoming more effective around the net.
Their semifinal qualification adds another major achievement to an already impressive international partnership. The duo reached the All England Open semifinals in consecutive years in 2022 and 2023. They also won the bronze at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and broke into the world’s top 10 at the beginning of last year.
