Badminton Asia Team C'ship: Indian Women Smash Records With First Gold

The Indian women's badminton team recorded a historic win with their first-ever gold medal after defeating Thailand 3-2 at the Badminton Asia Team Championships on February 18, 2024. Anmol Kharb sealed the deal for team India, beating a higher-ranked opponent in the clutch rubber at the finals in Shah Alam, Malaysia. This was India's first gold at the Championship while the Indian men's team had earlier secured bronze medals in 2016 and 2020.

Kharb emerged as the best player at the tournament in Selangor, with a string of consistently impressive performances. It was the 17-year-old's debut appearance at the Championships. India recorded unexpected wins against China, Hong Kong and Japan (in the semifinal) and once defeated three-time champions Thailand in the finals. 

India At The BATC '24 Finals

Olympian ace shuttler PV Sindhu secured a win against Thailand's Supanida Katethong by 21-12, 21-12 in the singles match, giving India a lead. Then came World No. 23 pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, who defeated Thailand's Jongkolphan and Rawinda  21-16, 18-21, 21-16 in the doubles event in the second match.

However, Thailand put up a tough competition and beat World No. 53 singles player Ashmita Chaliha from India in the third match, 21-11, 21-14. In the last doubles game, Indian pair Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra were defeated 21-11, 21-9 by Benyapa and Nuntakarn levelling the score to 2-2.

In the clutch round, India's fate was then in the hands of Anmol Kharb against World No.45 Pornpicha Choeikeewong. After a nail-biting match, Kharb secured 21-14, 21-9, winning the Gold for India, 3-2. The Indian team ran to the court to embrace the teenager who scripted history for the nation. 

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“I wanted to play my 100 per cent but there was no pressure on me at all," Kharb told the media. "We were confident of winning the fifth match. The experience has been really good, because everyone was higher-ranked than me. I’m very happy because it’s a big achievement at 17 years old. Now I have to train harder to beat tougher opponents.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X (Twitter) to congratulate the Indian women on their glorious triumph, calling it a "historic accomplishment."

A historical accomplishment!

Congratulations to the incredible Indian team who have, for the first time ever, won the Women's Team Trophy at the Badminton Asia Championships. Their success will motivate several upcoming athletes.

The way our Nari Shakti has been excelling in… pic.twitter.com/oRE8q3VXqA

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 18, 2024