India endured mixed fortunes at the World Championships on Thursday as PV Sindhu and Ayush Shetty bowed out in the singles events, while Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty and Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand advanced to the quarterfinals in men’s and women’s doubles respectively.
Satwik and Chirag, two-time bronze medallists in 2022 and 2025, fought back to defeat Malaysia’s Junaidi Arif and Yap Roy King 21-23, 21-19, 21-17 in the pre-quarterfinals.
The victory moved the Indian pair one win away from another World Championships medal.
Sindhu’s Medal Hopes End
Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu’s hopes of claiming a record sixth World Championships medal ended after a gruelling 11-21, 21-15, 17-21 defeat to China’s world No. 3 Wang Zhi Yi.
The world No. 9 Indian fought back after losing the opening game and forced a decider, where she led 13-10 and later 16-15.
However, Wang turned the match around despite suffering severe cramps in both legs during the closing stages.
The Chinese eventually secured the victory, with Sindhu unable to convert her chances as Wang sealed the contest after a tense finish.
“I don’t know if she had an injury or what, maybe that was her tactics and her way of doing it,” Sindhu said after the match.
“It does hurt a lot more because after you train and work hard for so long, losing these kind of matches definitely hurts a lot. But I think it is a game, that is how it is supposed to be.”
Ayush’s Singles Campaign Ends
Earlier, 21-year-old Ayush Shetty’s impressive run came to an end with a 19-21, 11-21 defeat against Indonesia’s world No. 12 Alwi Farhan.
Ayush had created one of the biggest upsets of the tournament in the opening round by defeating defending champion and world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi.
The defeat was his fifth in eight meetings against the 11th-seeded Indonesian and ended India’s men’s singles campaign at the championships.
Lakshya Sen had been eliminated on Wednesday.
Treesa-Gayatri Make History
India’s women’s doubles pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continued their impressive campaign by reaching the quarterfinals with a commanding 21-16, 21-12 win over Japanese seventh seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi.
The unseeded Indians dominated the world No. 7 pair in a one-sided contest, taking another major step towards a maiden World Championships medal.
It was India’s first women’s doubles quarterfinal appearance at the World Championships since Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa reached the last eight in 2015.
Treesa and Gayatri are on a comeback trail after Treesa’s injury and will now look to carry their momentum into the quarterfinals.
Satwik-Chirag Survive Thriller
Satwik and Chirag were pushed hard by the Malaysian pair after dropping a tight opening game 21-23.
The Indians responded strongly, taking the second game 21-19 before controlling the decider to win 21-17.
Having received a first-round bye and a second-round walkover, this was their first match of the tournament.
With two World Championships bronze medals already in their collection, the Indian combination now stands one victory away from securing another podium finish.
India’s remaining doubles contenders will hope to extend the country’s medal challenge as the tournament enters its business end.
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