India’s Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand stunned Chinese world No4 pair in BWF World Championships 2026 to march into the semifinals of women’s doubles event on Friday.
Published: August 21, 2026, 2:59 PM IST
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India’s Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand in action in women’s doubles semifinal at BWF World Championships 2026(Photo: PTI)
Indian women doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand assured themselves of a medal at the BWF World Championships 2026 with a come-from-behind win over China’s Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian in the quarterfinal at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium on FridayThe Indian unseeded pair, which is on a comeback trail after Treesa recovered from an injury, toiled for one hour nine minutes to produce one of the biggest wins of their career, a 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 triumph to cruise to the last four stage and be assured of at least a bronze medal.
India last claimed a BWF World Championships medal in women’s doubles in 2011, when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won the bronze in LondonThe Indians came into the match with a 0-3 head-to-head record against their Chinese opponents.
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Treesa Jolly opens up about the journey that led her and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela to a historic moment at the #BWFWorldChampionships 2026#NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/rxilMMqkGd
— Olympic Khel ™ (@OlympicKhel) August 21, 2026
Treesa and Gayatri fell behind 1-6 early on but fought their way back to 8-9 with six successive points before the Chinese entered the interval with a three-point advantageThe Indians continued to fight, staying within touching distance at 13-15 after some excellent ralliesThe duo made the Chinese work hard, engaging them in several intense net battlesZhang and Jia, however, moved to 17-14 before closing out the opening game.
After the change of sides, Zhang and Jia carried their momentum into the second game, opening up a 5-1 lead and then moving to 10-7But the Indians responded with a spirited comeback, turning the tables to move ahead 13-10The contest remained tight, with the score reaching 15-14 at one stageThe Indians then produced another decisive burst to open up a 19-14 lead and roar back into the contest.
In the decider, Treesa and Gayatri came out firing, surging to an 11-5 lead before extending it to 14-7 with a flurry of three points that the Chinese simply could not negotiateThere were a few nervous moments, with Treesa sending one shot into the net and Gayatri committing a service errorBut the Chinese could not capitaliseInstead, they began to wilt under pressure, making a series of unforced errors at the net as the home favourites raced to a 17-9 lead.
The contrast in body language was strikingTreesa and Gayatri responded to every point with fist pumps and high-fives, while the Chinese shoulders began to dropGayatri’s fierce flat exchanges with the Jia and Zhang were one of the highlights of the matchThe experienced Chinese pair began to crumble under the relentless pressureAt 18-9, they sent another shot wide.
The Indians missed a couple of opportunities at the net, but continued to hold their nerveThey earned nine match points when Jia and Zhang once again failed to negotiate a shot and found the netJia and Zhang saved two match points, but then sprayed another shot wideTreesa fell flat on the court in celebration, while Gayatri looked in disbelief as the Indians completed a stunning comeback.
In the past, Treesa and Gayatri made it to the All England Open semi-finals in 2022 and 2023They also won a Commonwealth Games bronze in 2022 and broke into the top 10 at the start of last year.
However, early this year, Treesa suffered an ankle injury while training ahead of the Asia Badminton Championships and Uber CupAfter a gruelling rehabilitation, Treesa and Gayatri returned at the Indonesia Open and then played at US Open before winning the Philippine International Challenge early this month.
– with PTI inputs
