Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand - India's new dependable shuttlers

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand’s dream run at the All England Open Championship 2023 came to an end after they faced a defeat against World no. 20 South Korean pair Lee So-hee and Kong Hee-yong in the semi-finals. Nonetheless, their performance was the best among all the Indian participants at the All England Open Championship 2023. Although the pair lost in the semis, they definitely looked like a duo who are here to stay.

The All England Open Championship 2023, the world’s oldest badminton tournament, featured the likes of PV Sindhu, HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, and Chirag Shetty. However, none of the star shuttlers could advance past the Round of 16. It was the young pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand who carried the nation’s responsibility on their shoulders. On their way to the semis, they got the better of former World no.1 duo Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota of Japan in straight sets in the Round of 16.

Treesa and Gayatri in the previous edition of the All England Open

It is, however, interesting to note that this wasn’t their first semi-final at the All England Open Championship. In the 2022 edition of the championship, they moved to the semis after defeating the then World Championships silver medalists Lee So-hee and Shin Seung-chan of South Korea by 14-21, 22-20, and 21-15. With this, they scripted history by becoming the first Indian doubles pair to enter the semi-finals of the All England Open.

It was even more of a fairytale run for the shuttlers. They were in the reserves list but were promoted to play at the prestigious event due to last minute withdrawal. In the first round, they defeated the Thai pair of Benyapa Aimsaard and Nuntakarn Aimsaard of Thailand 17-21, 22-20, 21-14 to move to the second round. In the Round of 16, they had an uphill task ahead of them as they faced the reigning Olympic champions, Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu. The Indonesian pair started off the proceedings by winning the first set. But, Treesa and Gayatri came back strongly in the second one. Just when the pair were on the verge of winning the second set, the Indonesian champion pair retired due to an injury.

This ensured the Indians a spot in the quarter-finals of the All England Open 2022. However, the Indian pair wasn’t happy. Instead of celebrating, Treesa emphasized that she didn’t want everyone to call the pair “lucky”. “I want us to beat our opponents,” she further added in an interview. The pair did exactly what they had desired. They stunned higher-ranked South Korean in the quarters to book their place in the semi-finals of the BWF Super 1000 tournament.

What led to the formation of the young pair?

Treesa and Gayatri became a pair before the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. It was Arun Vishnu, their present coach, and Pullela Gopichand, the chief national coach of the Indian badminton team and father of Gayatri, to pair them together. The primary reason behind the pairing was there were four girls available for doubles back during that time – Rutuparna Panda, Tanisha Crasto, Gayatri Gopichand, and Treesa Jolly. Considering Rutuparna and Treesa’s aggressive gameplay, Pullela Gopichand recommended splitting both of them. And the rest is history.

Treesa and Gayatri’s first major tournament win

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand represented the Indian contingent at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham. Not much was expected from them considering that this was also their first major tournament as a pair. However, they went on to claim the bronze medal as a pair despite losing to the no.1 seeded pair of Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan in the semis. They defeated Chen Hsuan-yu and Gronya Somerville of Australia in straight sets to add a major medal to their feat. Before this match, the Australian pair had defeated higher-ranked Jin Yujia and Crystal Wong of Singapore in the quarter-finals.

Let’s take a look at the performance at the Commonwealth Games 2022

The Rise of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand

After their Commonwealth Games 2022 bronze medal triumph, the duo couldn’t replicate their success in the BWF tournaments in 2022. However, in 2023, the duo bounced back strongly, especially at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships (BAMTC) 2023. Young Treesa and Gayatri didn’t lose a single match throughout the tournament and were instrumental in India’s historic bronze medal win. In fact, the Indian team relied on the dynamic duo in the whole competition where every other shuttler struggled. 

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand even defeated their arch-nemesis Tan Pearly and Thinaah Muralitharan of Malaysia in the group B match of BAMTC. This was their first win against the Commonwealth Games 2022 gold medalist Malaysian pair. This match itself showed their dedication and resilience against much stronger and higher-ranked opponents. Their attitude to never give up no matter what is the thing that makes them different from others.

Performance of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand in the All England Open Championships 2023 and Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2023

What is the future of the Indian pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand?

Considering how the Indian duo of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand have carried themselves, there is no doubt that the future of Indian Badminton is in safe hands. Their incredible progress as a pair in such a short span of time implies that the pair will only develop into an even more formidable pair. If they continue to perform this way in the upcoming BWF tournaments, nothing will stop them from being the ultimate champions. Treesa and Gayatri’s rise in the sport is indeed inspiring and will encourage many young badminton stars as they aim to bring glory to the nation.