Ashmita Chaliha Shines at Korea Masters, Reaches First BWF World Tour Final
Ashmita Chaliha showcased her remarkable comeback at the Korea Masters Super 300, defeating fellow Indian player Rakshitha Ramraj 21-13, 16-21, 21-13 in 48 minutes. With this victory, she secured a spot in her first BWF World Tour singles final, set to take place in Iksan on Saturday.
At 26 years old, Ashmita returned to competition in May after recovering from a knee injury that kept her off the court for three months. Now, she’s ready to compete against China’s fourth seed, Han Qianxi, in the championship match.
Ranked 50th in the world, Ashmita trains under Park Tae-sang at the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati. Her comeback season has been impressive, highlighted by a semifinal finish at the Macau Open. Earlier in the tournament, she also upset top seed and world No. 22 Hina Akechi from Japan in the quarterfinals.
In her semifinal, Qianxi, ranked 35th globally, fought hard to win against her opponent with scores of 22-20, 18-21, 21-14 after a competitive hour and five-minute game.
ASHMITA’S STRONG PLAY
Ashmita started aggressively against Rakshitha, quickly changing a tie of 2-2 into a 6-2 lead. She maintained control, eventually winning the first game 21-13.
Despite Ashmita’s strong start, 19-year-old Rakshitha, training at the Pullela Gopichand Academy, bounced back in the second game. She jumped to a 4-1 lead and extended it to 8-3, taking advantage of Ashmita’s mistakes.
Ashmita fought back with powerful smashes, bringing the score to 12-13. However, Rakshitha held her nerve and regained her composure, winning the second game 21-16.
In the third game, Ashmita quickly took charge, leading 9-1 with a series of strong smashes and capitalizing on Rakshitha’s errors. She went into the break with an 11-3 lead.
Though Rakshitha tried to close the gap, Ashmita steadied her game and pushed her lead to 15-7. Misplaced shots from Rakshitha allowed Ashmita to extend her advantage to 18-9. Although she missed two match points, Rakshitha’s error sealed Ashmita’s victory.
This win marks Ashmita’s first appearance in a BWF World Tour final and adds to the growing success of Indian badminton. She becomes the second Indian singles player in consecutive weeks to reach a World Tour final, following Tanvi Sharma’s triumph at the Taipei Open last Sunday.
This season, Indian players have been making their mark in various tournaments, with notable performances from Ayush Shetty at the Asia Championships, Lakshya Sen at the All England, and others like Devika Sihag, Kidambi Srikanth, PV Sindhu, and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
The excitement around Indian badminton continues to build as more players succeed on the international stage.
