Indian women's badminton team have defied odds to clinch a historic gold on Sunday, February 18 by beating Thailand in the final of the Badminton Asia Team Championships final. (More Badminton News)
Match 1 saw PV Sindhu emerge victorious against Supanida Katethong 21-12, 21-12 in the singles.
The following match was a doubles that saw Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand Pullela come up against Jongkolphan Kititharakul/Rawinda Pra Jongjai. The Indian pair left everything out there on the court with a thrilling 21-16, 18-21, 21-16 win to hand India a 2-0 lead in the tie.
However, Thailand fought back valiantly through Busanan Ongbamrungphan who defeated Ashmita Chaliha in match 3 of the Badminton Asia Team Championship women's final. She defeated the Indian 11-21, 14-21 to give some hope.
Match 4 saw another doubles match between Priya Konjengbam/Shruti Mishra and Thai pair, Benyapa Aimsaard/Nuntakarn Aimsaard. However, the Indian pair came up short in the end as they went down 11-21, 9-21 to take the final to a thrilling final as the tie was locked at 2-2.
It all boiled down to the singles match between Anmol Kharb and Pornpicha Choeikeewong. Anmol, who earned praise from Indian badminton legend Pullela Gopichand, who called her brave and intelligent, took the first game 21-14. The young Indian dominated her Thai counterpart in the second game too.
Kharb finally won 21-14, 21-9 as India scripted history in the Badminton Asia Team Championships.
Congratulating the team on the title triumph, Badminton Association of India secretary Sanjay Mishra said, “It is a proud moment for all of us. It also underlined the depth of badminton talent in India and we are confident that this bunch of players will win many more titles in the coming years.”
Results:
Women’s final: India bt Thailand 3-2 (PV Sindhu bt Supanida Katethong 21-12, 21-12; Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand bt Jongkolphan Kititharakul/Rawinda Prajongjai 21-16, 18-21, 21-16; Ashmita Chaliha lost to Busanan Ongbamrungphan 11-21, 14-21; Priya Konjengbam/Shruti Mishra lost to Benyapa Aimsaard/Nuntakarn Aimsaard 11-21, 9-21; Anmol Kharab bt Pornpicha Choeikeewong 21-14, 21-9)
