The Indian Men’s Badminton team has a script history. They have got their hands on the Thomas Cup. The Indian Men’s Badminton beat the Indonesian team in the final by 3-0 to get their hands on this trophy. This is said to be the greatest triumph by a badminton team in the history of the sport in India. The team featured Kidambi Srikanth, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, Lakshya Sen, Dhruv Kapila, M.R Arjun, and HS Prannoy. The later doubles and singles games of HS Prannoy didn’t take place as by then India had already won the majority of games. Here is an in-depth look:
Lakshya Sen Beats Anthony Sinisuka in Thomas Cup Final:
The first game of the final saw Lakshya Sen running through Anthony Sinisuka of Indonesia. He won the first set 8-21. The second game set was won 21-17. And the knock-out punch was delivered by winning the third set 21-16. The game saw a dominant version of Lakshya Sen. He was continuously on the offense and this led to his opponent committing mistakes.
Lakshya Sen is currently ranked World Number 9. This is his career-best. Sen also happens to be a former Junior World Number 1. His performance was integral in India’s first-ever Thomas Cup triumph. Lakshya comes from Almora in Uttarakhand and is aged only 20!
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won the Second Game for India at Thomas Cup:
The duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty first came into the limelight after the duo performed exceptionally well at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. They beat the gold medalists in the group stage but got knocked out due to their NRR.
This duo has got the job done now! They won the second game of the finals for India. It was a men’s doubles match between them and Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo. The Indian team won the game in straight sets. The scoreline read 18-21, 23-21, and 21-19. Chirag and Satwik were splendid and this showed in their chemistry on the court as well. The duo was quite clear with their plans and their attacks were calculated. Chirag and Satwik are ranked World Number 7 as a pair.
Chirag comes from the “City of Dreams” in Mumbai. He was born in 1997. Satwik on the other hand is 3 years younger than Chirag and comes from Amalapuram in Andhra Pradesh. Rankireddy came into the limelight when he won the mixed doubles gold with Ashwini Ponnappa at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Kidambi Srikanth Won Against Jonatan Christie:
The knock-out punch of the entire final was thrown by Kidambi Srikanth. The better half of Saina Nehwal finally proved how exceptional he can be on his day. Kidambi Srikanth has been dominating the national level for a very long time. He is India’s most bankable and experienced candidate in this sport.
Kidambi fired on the day it mattered the most. He was up against Jonatan Christie of Indonesia while India was leading 2-0. He beat Jonatan in straight sets 21-15 and 23-21. This sealed the deal for the Indian team. Kidambi performed his iconic shirt celebration.
To know more go to the official website of the Badminton Association of India.
