Given the run of form that he has had at the $550,000 Badminton Asia Championships, Ayush Shetty had raised Indian hopes ahead of the men’s singles final on Sunday.
Having beaten four world class opponents, three of them among the world’s top seven, the unheralded 20-year-old surprised one and all with his electric run to the final, ready to challenge for an elusive gold that has come India’s way only twice in the 64-year-old history of the tournament.
But it wasn’t to be as reigning world champion and home favourite Shi Yu Qi proved too formidable an opponent for Shetty, who lost 8-21, 10-21 in 42 minutes to end a special run in Ningbo, China as runner-up.
It is a rare bright spark for India in the annual tournament. Dinesh Khanna won the men’s singles gold in 1965. It took Indian shuttlers another 58 years before Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty clinched the men’s doubles gold in 2023. Indian shuttlers have won 16 bronze medals too.
“Really grateful for the final,” said Shetty. “It was a fantastic week for me. It was a pity it had to end this way. I would have liked to have a great match. But looking back, I was solid throughout the week. After the semi-final, the recovery was good, I was feeling great, but Shi Yu Qi was solid. He was hitting winners all over the court.”
Backed by a vociferous crowd, the second seed was too strong for the Indian, who graduated to the senior level only two years ago. The world No.2 controlled the proceedings from the start, choosing the right moments to hammer in explosive smashes that earned him easy points.
The contest clearly showed the difference that experience, control and tactical discipline can make at the highest level. The two-time All England winner was well-prepared from the outset, visible from his quality of strokes as he controlled the tempo, denying Shetty the rhythm he thrives on and inducing errors from him to win the first game.
“By keeping the shuttle slightly off the ideal hitting zone, he prevented Ayush from unleashing his steep attacking smashes and sharp net tumbles. That was a key tactical ploy, executed with great precision,” Shetty’s coach U Vimal Kumar told HT from Bali.
Just like the semi-final victory against world No.1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn, Shetty started the second game on an attacking note to go 7-2 up through better length and sharper attacking intent. But again, Shi induced a cluster of errors from the Mangaluru-born.
In no time, Shi levelled at 7-all before taking control of the match. Shetty’s inexperience was visible as he lacked ideas on how to turn things around. The tricks he had employed earlier were not working against Shi, who won 19 of the last 22 points and claimed a title that had eluded him for a decade.
“This has still been a very significant week for Ayush. Matches like these are invaluable – they expose exactly what is required to compete consistently with the very best in the world,” said Vimal.