Lalita sattayathadakoon

Jagsher Singh Khangurra: India’s impressive run at the Badminton Asia U-17 & U-15 Championships in Chengdu gathered momentum on Saturday, with five young shuttlers storming into the semifinals and guaranteeing medals for the country.

The standout performance came from Lakshya Rajesh, who scripted one of the biggest upsets of the tournament by defeating top seed Lalita Sattayathadakoon of Thailand in a thrilling three-game encounter. After losing the first game 11-21, Lakshya showed remarkable grit and composure to turn the match around, clinching the next two games 21-16, 21-19 to book her place in the U-17 girls’ singles semifinals.

Her victory was the perfect highlight to a dominant day for the Indian contingent, which saw success across singles and doubles events. Sixth seed Diksha Sudhakar maintained her consistent form, brushing aside Indonesia’s Raisya Affatunisa 21-17, 21-8 in a commanding display that underlined her growing stature in the competition.