Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand’s remarkable run at the World Championships came to an end with a fighting three-game defeat against world No. 1 and defending champions Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning of China in the women’s doubles semifinals on Saturday.
The unseeded Indian pair, who had produced a string of impressive performances on their way to the last four, showed tremendous character against the formidable Chinese combination. Although they eventually went down 21-18, 13-21, 8-21, Treesa and Gayatri walked away with a maiden World Championships bronze medal.
The Indians made an electrifying start and immediately put pressure on the reigning champions, matching their pace and aggression in the opening exchanges. Treesa and Gayatri stayed composed during the crucial stages of the first game and converted their opportunities to take it 21-18. With the Chinese pair briefly unsettled, the Indians looked capable of pulling off another major upset and reaching the World Championships final.
However, Liu and Tan gradually found their rhythm and began to dictate the rallies with greater control and precision. The Chinese duo stepped up the pace in the second game, forcing the Indians into longer exchanges and errors as they levelled the contest at 1-1 by taking the game 21-13. The momentum remained firmly with the defending champions in the decider, where they raced ahead early and never allowed the Indians to recover, closing out the match 21-8 after an hour and 11 minutes.
Despite the semifinal loss, the bronze marks a significant milestone for Treesa and Gayatri and underlines their rapid rise on the international stage. India had last won a World Championships medal in women’s doubles in 2011, when Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa claimed bronze in London. Thirteen years later, Treesa and Gayatri have restored India’s presence on the World Championships women’s doubles podium with a performance that promises much more to come.