India’s Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand ended the country’s 15-year wait for a women’s doubles medal at the BWF World Championships after producing a stunning comeback victory over China’s Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian in the quarterfinals on Friday.
The unseeded Indian pair, playing in front of home support in New Delhi, fought back from a game down to beat the fourth-seeded Chinese duo 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 in a 69-minute contest. The victory took Treesa and Gayatri into the semifinals and assured them at least a bronze medal.
The achievement is particularly significant for Indian women’s doubles badminton. India’s last World Championships medal in the event came in 2011, when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won bronze in London.
Fightback after losing the opening game
The Indian pair struggled to impose themselves early and dropped the opening game 16-21. They responded strongly in the second, improving their attacking play and finding greater success with their smashes and net play.
The momentum remained with the Indians in the decider as they continued to put pressure on their opponents and eventually closed out the match 21-13.
Also read: Treesa-Gayatri enter World Championships quarters
The semifinal berth adds another major achievement to a partnership that has already enjoyed success on the international circuit. Treesa and Gayatri reached the All England Open semifinals in 2022 and 2023 and won a bronze medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. They also broke into the world’s top 10 at the beginning of 2025.
Remarkable comeback after injury
Their progress was interrupted earlier this year when Treesa suffered a serious ankle injury during training ahead of the Asia Badminton Championships and Uber Cup. She sustained the injury after accidentally stepping on Gayatri’s foot, with scans revealing two high-grade muscle tears and two ligament tears.
The injury forced Treesa into a lengthy rehabilitation programme, but the pair gradually returned to competition at the Indonesia Open before featuring at the US Open.
They then won the Philippine International Challenge earlier this month, building momentum ahead of the World Championships. Their latest victory marks the biggest achievement of their comeback and guarantees India a women’s doubles medal at the tournament for the first time in 15 years.
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