The Indian shuttlers scripted badminton history when they lead the country to the coveted gold medal at the Thomas Cup after they secured a 3-0 thumping series win over record 14-time champions Indonesia in straight matches in Bangkok, Thailand, on Sunday, May 15. They have become just the sixth country to win the premier badminton competition. It is also India's first-ever medal at the Thomas Cup, since the tournament's inception 73 years ago.
Lakshya Sen began the rout in the first match when he beat Anthony Sinisuka Ginting 8-21, 21-17, 21-16 in the first match of the series. The World Championship bronze medallist Lakshya shocked world No. 5 Ginting in a battle that lasted one hour and five minutes.
"I wasn't worried because I was going to play better end in the last 11 points. I knew I could open up and play. I knew he (Ginting) was under pressure. This is for the team. they've been backing me through my bad performances. Not bad... I was playing well but I wasn’t getting the win," Lakshya said after the match.
Lakshya's win was followed by a doubles victory for Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who beat Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo 18-21, 23-21, 21-19 to give India a 2-0 lead against Indonesia.
The final win came to Kidambi Srikanth, who beat Jonatan Christie, against whom the shuttler has a topsy-turvy record. It was a straight-sets thrashing of Christie, with Srikanth now taking a 6-5 head-to-head lead over his Indonesia counterpart.
The flurry of records created includes a sixth straight victory for Srikanth, which is the best for any player in India's history at the Thomas Cup. It is also the first time that India have beaten Indonesia at the pioneer badminton tournament.
India's sports minister Anurag Thakur has announced a Rs 1 crore cash prize announced for Team India that lifted the Thomas Cup.
