In a historic moment for India, the duo of Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly have stunned fourth-seed China's Jia Yifan and Zhang Shuxian and have entered the semi-finals of the ongoing BWF World Championships 2026. The win also meant that the duo had secured India’s first medal in the women’s doubles category after 15 years.
The duo ended India’s long wait for a medal at the event as they fought back from a game down and registered a 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 victory in a thrilling quarter-final clash. In what will be remembered for ages to come, the duo of Gayatri-Treesa ensured that India won a medal at the BWF World Championships for the first time since Ashwini Ponnappa and Jwala Gutta claimed bronze in 2011.
It is worth noting that for 14 years, the India women’s doubles category was unable to make its way to the podium. However, breaking the losing streak, Gayatri and Treesa stunned the crowd and scripted history, inspiring several others.
Many had backed them to register a win against the Chinese duo as they had been in spectacular form coming into the game. Both Treesa and Gayatri had put in some brilliant performances in the Round of 64, Round of 32 and pre-quarter-finals, registering straight-game victories in each of those matches.
Gayatri-Treesa defied all odds to defeat Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian
It is interesting to note that both Jolly and Treesa had lost all three of their encounters against Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian, which saw many doubting if they would be able to defeat the Chinese duo as the stars collided in the quarter-final of the tournament.
Furthermore, the Indian contingent had secured a medal at every edition of the BWF World Championships since 2011; however, the win of Gayatri and Treesa holds particular significance as a medal in the women’s doubles category had eluded India for more than a decade. With their place secured in the semis, it could be interesting to see how the duo fares in the upcoming clash and if they can secure a silver medal for themselves with a potential place in the final.
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