Treesa-Gayatri, Satwik-Chirag keep India’s medal hopes alive as Sindhu, Ayush sink

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand were at their dominating best as they upset seventh seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi of Japan to become the first Indian women’s doubles combination to reach the BWF World Championships quarterfinals in 11 years while two-time bronze medallist Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty eked out a thrilling win at the Indira Gandhi stadium in New Delhi on Thursday.

However, there were heartbreaks for the home fans as PV Sindhu and Ayush Shetty went down.

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World No. 39 Treesa and Gayatri were clearly the better of the two pairs in action as they registered a 21-16, 21-12 win to set up a last-eight clash against fourth seeds Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shi Xian of China.

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty held their nerves after losing a close opening game to beat Junaidi Arif and Yap Roy King of Malaysia 21-23, 21-19, 21-17 to reach the last eight

Later Satwik and Chirag held their nerves after losing a close opening game to beat Junaidi Arif and Yap Roy King of Malaysia 21-23, 21-19, 21-17 to reach the last eight, where they will face Chinese 3rd seeds Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang.

Lakshya suffers shock exit, Unnati too falls; Sindhu, Ayush, Satwik-Chirag march on

However, Sindhu’s hopes of a sixth world championships medal was shattered after she went down 21-11, 15-21, 21-17 against third seed Wang Zhi Yi of China and giant-killer Ayush Shetty’s campaign ended with a 21-19, 21-11 loss against Alwi Farhan of Indonesia.

On either side of the singles losses, the two doubles combinations kept hopes of India continuing its medal streak that started in 2011 alive with contrasting victories.

Treesa and Gayatri took the initiative

Treesa and Gayatri, who had broken into world top-10 before injuries pegged them back, took the initiative from the start against their Japanese opponents and mixed things up with Treesa willing to charge to the net and create openings despite being a predominantly back court player.

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The home favourites opened up a 13-9 lead in the opening game before Iwanaga and Nakanishi began engaging them in longer rallies and inducing errors. The Japanese won seven consecutive points and it looked like they could run away with the opening game. But Treesa and Gayatri not only regrouped well but also won the next eight points to pocket the opening game.

Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly are on a roll. No Indian women’s doubles combination had reached the world championships quarters since Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa reached the last eight stage back in 2015 edition in Jakarta. Pics: BAI

The second game was a much simpler affair as the Indians were clearly on a high after winning the opening game and kept their opponents guessing with quick drops and crosscourt smashes to win in 44 minutes. No Indian women’s doubles combination had reached the world championships quarters since Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa reached the last eight stage back in 2015 edition in Jakarta.

“Initially, it was neck to neck and our coaches asked us to attack. Attacking game is our strength and we were very calm when we were leading,” said Gayatri.

In the last match of the day, Satwik and Chirag saved two game points in the opening game against the Malaysians but still conceded the game. But the Indians held their nerves in the second game and fought back from 16-18 down to take the match in the decider.

The final game also followed a similar pattern as Satwik and Chirag trailed 12-15, before levelling the scores at 17-17 and then grabbing the next four points to seal a quarterfinal berth.

Sindhu goes down to Wang

Earlier, former world champion Sindhu played her heart out against third seed Wang of China but could not end on the right side of the final scoreline after a bruising 88 minute encounter that saw the Chinese staying down on the court due to cramps twice in the decider. The loss also ended Sindhu’s unbeaten record against the Chinese in the World Championships.

Sindhu struggled to find her rhythm in the opening game but raised her game in the second, winning six straight points from 15-15 to force the decider.

In the decider, Sindhu was the first to get off the blocks as she opened up a 8-4 lead before a couple of errors allowed Wang to draw level at 9-9. Sindhu once again grabbed the initiative to take a 13-10 lead but looked tired as her tentative pushes went into the net and her opponent finally took the lead by clinching five straight points.

PV Sindhu struggled to find her rhythm in the opening game but raised her game in the second, winning six straight points from 15-15 to force the decider

Both the players were engaged in at least three over 30-shot rallies thereafter, including the 54-shot exchange at 17-18, leaving both of them completely exhausted. Wang, the younger of the two, finally closed things with a crosscourt smash.

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“I should have stayed patient (in the third game). It was going good and I am disappointed with the final result as I should have converted the advantage,” Sindhu said after the match.

Important results: Men’s Singles: 7-Victor Lai (CAN) beat 13-Loh Kean Yew (SGP) 22-20, 21-18; Rasmus Gemke (DEN) beat 3-Jonatan Christie (INA) 11-21, 21-13, 21-18; 11-Alwi Farhan (INA) beat Ayush Shetty (IND) 21-19, 21-11; 10-Kodai Naraoka (JPN) beat 8-Li Shi Feng (CHN) 13-21, 23-21, 21-11.

Women’s Singles: 1-An Se Young (KOR) beat 16-Mia Blichfeldt (DEN) 21-16, 21-10; 10-Pornpawee Chochuwong (THA) beat 4-Chen Yufei (CHN) 15-21, 25-23, 21-17; 13-Michelle Li (CAN) beat 8-Tomoka Miyazaki (JPN) 17-21, 21-16, 21-18; 2-Akane Yamaguchi (JPN) beat 14-Sim You Jin (KOR) 21-17, 21-10; 15-Line Chirstophersen (DEN) beat 6-Putri Wardani (INA) 21-18, 21-17; 3-Wang Zhi Yi (CHN) beat 9-PV Sindhu (IND) 21-11, 15-21, 21-17.

Men’s Doubles: 5-Chirag Shetty/Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (IND) beat Junaidi Arif/Yap Roy King (MAS) 21-23, 21-19, 21-17; 3-Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang (CHN) beat Kim Astrup/Anders Rasmussen (DEN) 22-20, 8-21, 21-19.

Women’s doubles: Gayatri Gopichand/Treesa Jolly (IND) beat 7-Rin Iwanaga/Kie Nakanishi (JPN) 21-16, 21-12; 4-Jia Yi Fan/Zhang Shu Xian beat Hsieh Pei Shan/Hung En-Tzu (TPE) 21-11, 21-18; 13-Febriana Kusuma/Meilysa Puspitasari (INA) beat 5-Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan (MAS) 20-22, 21-18, 21-12.

Mixed Doubles: 6-Guo Xin Wa/Chen Fang Hui (CHN) beat 15-Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto (IND) 21-16, 21-5; 11-Yang Po-Husan/Hu Ling Fang (TPE) beat 3-Mathias Christiansen/Alexandra Boje (DEN) 21-13, 9-21, 21-14.