World Championships: Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand enter semifinals, achieve 15-year first

In a series of proud moments, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand scripted a memorable chapter for Indian badminton by securing a medal at the BWF World Championships. The Indian duo surprised China's World No.4 champion of Jia Yifan and Zhang Shuxian in a thrilling quarterfinal clash, fighting back from a game down to seal a 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 win.

By securing a berth in the semifinals, Treesa and Gayatri have assured themselves of at least a bronze medal, becoming the first Indian women's doubles pair in 15 years to achieve the feat at the World Championships. Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa were the last to do so, winning bronze in 2011 following their campaign coming to an end in the semis.

With this, a win in the upcoming semifinal would give Treesa and Gayatri the chance to go one step further and secure India's best-ever finish in women's doubles at the prestigious event.

Big setback in the first game

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand found themselves under immense pressure right from the start of the opening game, with the Chinese duo racing to a strong 6-0 advantage. The early deficit left the Indians playing catch-up for the rest of the game. Despite their efforts to reduce the gap, Treesa and Gayatri struggled to deal with their opponents' powerful smashes and eventually conceded the first game 16-21.

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Strong comeback from Indian duo

Treesa and Gayatri bounced back in the second game, changing the momentum by making their Chinese opponent cover more ground across the court. The Indian duo created strong openings with clever placement before capitalising with aggressive smashes, slowly taking control and moving 19-15 ahead. They managed the pressure in the dying stages and finished the game 21-15 to force the quarterfinal into a decider.

The deciding game witnessed Treesa and Gayatri fall 1-4 behind early but the Indian duo turned the tables around with an aggressive intent. They reeled off eight consecutive points to surge 9-4 ahead before taking an 11-6 advantage into the mid-game interval.

The Chinese duo struggled to react under huge pressure after the break, while Treesa and Gayatri continued to dictate the rallies. The Indians eventually closed out the decider 21-13, completing a strong comeback and securing a berth in the semis.