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Ayush Shetty upsets world No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn to reach Badminton Asia Championships final, secures historic medal for India after wins over Li Shi Feng and Jonatan Christie
Badminton Asia Championships: India’s Ayush Shetty (PTI)
Ayush Shetty shocked World No. 1 and Paris 2024 silver medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand in the semi-final of the Badminton Asia Championships at the Ningbo Olympic Sports Centre on Saturday.
The Indian shuttler came back from behind to beat the top seed 10-21, 21-19, 21-17 in an hour and 15 minutes.
The duo had met once before, at the Arctic Open last year, when Vitidsarn beat Ayush in straight games.
Ayush’s Historic Run
He has already done enough to secure a medal, becoming the first Indian men’s singles player since HS Prannoy in 2018 to reach the podium at the Asian meet. It also ends a brief wait for India overall, with the last medal coming from Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in 2023.
Ayush had stormed into the semi-finals after beating world No. 4 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia on Friday. He registered a 23-21, 21-17 win over the Olympian and third seed, his first win over Christie in their maiden encounter.
History In The Making For Ayush
World No. 25 Ayush, the reigning US Open Super 300 champion, defeated Chin Yu Jen of Chinese Taipei in straight games on Thursday. Ayush had secured a comfortable 21-16, 21-12 victory over the Taipei shuttler in a match that lasted 41 minutes. He began his campaign with a stunning win over world No. 7 and fifth seed Li Shi Feng of China, prevailing 21-13, 21-16 in the opening round.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu’s campaign ended in the second round, while Lakshya Sen bowed out in the opening round.
(With inputs from Agencies)
April 11, 2026, 12:12 IST
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