India beats Indonesia 3-0 to win maiden Thomas Cup title, HIGHLIGHTS

Thomas Cup Final Highlights, India vs Indonesia: Check out Sportstar's highlights of the 2022 Thomas Cup final played at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand where India beat 14-time champion Indonesia 3-0.

Updated : May 16, 2022 11:07 IST

India men's badminton team beat Indonesia 3-0 in Bangkok on Sunday to win its first ever Thomas Cup title.
India men's badminton team beat Indonesia 3-0 in Bangkok on Sunday to win its first ever Thomas Cup title.
lightbox-info

India men's badminton team beat Indonesia 3-0 in Bangkok on Sunday to win its first ever Thomas Cup title.

Thanks for tuning into Sportstar's live coverage of the 2022 Thomas Cup final between India and Indonesia. This was Nihit Sachdeva taking you through the action as it unfurled at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

MATCH OVERVIEW

FEATURE:

FEATURE:

REPORT:

That's a wrap. See you next time. Till then, take care and stay safe.

The next Thomas and Uber Cup Finals will be played in Chengdu, China in 2024.

The national flags of the medallists have been brought in and it is time for the Indian national anthem to be played at the Impact Arena. Indeed, a proud moment for the entire Indian sports fraternity.

And now, the moment they have all been waiting for. The Indian team finally gets it hands on the coveted Thomas Cup trophy.

Indian men's badminton team, the 2022 Thomas Cup champion, enters the arena to a loud cheer from the spectators. India is the sixth different nation to lift the cup. Indian shuttlers receive the precious gold medals and put them around the teammate next to them.

It is time for Indonesia to receive its silver medals. This was Indonesia's 21st final at the mega event and it is the most successful team with 14 titles. However, today, it was up against an Indian side which kept coming back after every blow and eventually turned it around to deliver the knockout punch.

The other losing semifinalist, Japan, receives its bronze medals. Japan had lost 3-2 to Indonesia in another nail-biting final four clash on the same day. Lovely gesture as the Japanese players put the medals around the neck of the teammate next to them.

First up, it is Denmark which receives its bronze medal. Denmark had lost to eventual champion India 3-2 in a thrilling semifinal on Friday.

The medal ceremony is on. The moment India and all its shuttlers have waited for. Their first-ever medal at the Men's World Cup of Badminton and it is GOLD.

I'm at a loss of words right now. After 73 years since the first Thomas Cup was played, India has finally made it to the list of winners and how - beating 14-time champion Indonesia 3-0 in the final.

Think about Lakshya Sen, the rising star of Indian badminton. Think about the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty who came back from the brink of defeat today to steal victory in the second match from Ahsan and Sukamuljo. Think about the warhorses - Srikanth and Prannoy - who have put in their heart and soul to make this happen.

 

Second Singles : Kidambi Srikanth wins 21-15, 23-21 against Jonatan Christie

SECOND GAME

23-21: THIS MIGHT BE THE MOST MEMORABLE POINT OF SRIKANTH'S LIFE. A GLORIOUS CROSS-COURT SMASH THAT BRINGS HOME INDIA'S FIRST EVER THOMAS CUP TITLE.

22-21: CHAMPIONSHIP POINT.

21-21: Perfect net shot from Srikanth.

20-21: OUTRAGEOUS! Srikanth seemed to have the point with the body smash but Christie reacts brilliantly to send it back to the vacant court behind the Indian.

20-20: Fantastic cross-court backhand block from Srikanth to save a game point.

19-20: Cool as you like from the Indonesian who keeps the shots closer to the net, gets Srikanth to lift it and then executes the drop shot beautifully.

19-19: Courageous from Christie who puts the pressure on the Indian with continues drives. Gets the equalising point.

19-18: Christie tries his best but a relentless Srikanth gets the winning smash in.

18-18: Parity restored as Christie smashes one into the net.

17-18: Christie lets Srikanth's clear go but the vicious drift makes it land on the line.

16-18: Srikanth's block needed to have a bit more to counter Christie's cross court smash as he manages to send it only into the net.

16-17: Christie defends the drop shot but the lift is just perfect for Srikanth to send it into the heart of the court.

14-16: It takes guts under pressure to not go for it and trust your judgement. Srikanth lets it go and Christie's lob lands beyond the baseline.

13-16: All of a sudden, Christie is in the driver's seat to take this to a decider.

13-14: The nerves seem to be getting to the Indian now. He has lost six of the last seven points.

13-12: Christie defends everything Srikanth throws at him and gets the reward as Srikanth lifts it long.

13-11: Both shuttlers wait for the other to take the risk. Christie goes first and finds the line with the smash down the line.

12-10: Clever from Christie who catches Srikanth unaware with the flick serve. Srikanth sends the return wide.

11-8: After hitting one into the net, Srikanth finds the line on the next with a down-the-line smash. Three-point lead at the mid-game interval.

8-7: My word! Christie thought he had won the battle of the net shots with the kill but a brilliant block from Srikanth sends the shuttle back to the Indonesian's half who just can't believe it.

7-6: Christie goes for the cross court smash but the shuttle hits the net and stays on his side of the court.

5-5: Srikanth controls the rally with measured shots before unleashing the body smash.

3-5: Three in a row for Christie as Srikanth sends one wide again. The drift might be working in Christie's favour at the moment.

3-3: Srikanth becomes a bit impatient and goes for the line early on in the rally. Misses it. Not by much though.

2-1: Not far enough from Christie and Srikanth sends a down-the-line smash.

FIRST GAME

21-15: SIX STRAIGHT POINTS TO WRAP UP THE OPENING GAME FOR SRIKANTH!!!

19-15: Down-the-line smash from Srikanth and Christie fails to send the block over the net.

17-15: Delectable block from Srikanth on Christie's body smash. Lands near the net and Christie was too far back.

16-15: This one is perfect. Cross court. Out of Christie's reach.

15-15: Back on level terms courtesy of a reckless smash into the net by the Indian.

15-13: Well, this is a bit of a concern for Srikanth as his lob goes long yet again.

15-11: Christie misjudges the flight of Srikanth's lift and goes for the smash which hits the net.

14-11: Decent cross-court smash from Christie. Deficit down to three.

13-10: Srikanth drives it long after winning the first two points upon the resumption of the game.

11-9: Srikanth leads by two points at the half way stage. Could have been more though since he was 8-2 up.

10-9: CHALLENGE. Beautiful cross court drop from Srikanth find the line. Christie challenges the call unsuccessfully.

9-9: Srikanth drives it with a bit too much on the shuttle as it goes past the baseline.

9-8: Powerful body smash from Srikanth to restore his lead.

8-8: SIX POINTS IN A ROW. Christie finding his rhythm and how!

8-7: Srikanth, with his net shots, looked in command of the rally before he was forced to lift and Christie does not miss the chance to send the smash down-the-line.

8-5: Srikanth's lob lands long yet again. Good judgement from Christie.

8-2: Just the kind of start Srikanth would have hoped for. Christie barely manager to retrieve one smash from Srikanth but the lift was not high enough as Srikanth finishes the point with another smash.

6-2: Weak cross court block from Christie hits the net.

4-2: Srikanth's lob lands just past the baseline.

4-0: Srikanth sets it up nicely with a down the line smash before finishing with the cross court kill.

2-0: Christie's lift gets carried by the drift and lands into the side alley.

-------------

Warm-up is done. Heading to real action!

Those four match points in the second game come back to haunt the Indonesian pair. Incredible fight and spirit shown by the Indian pair to put the team within one win of a historic Thomas Cup title. Next up is the second singles between Kidambi Srikanth and Jonatan Christie.

Here's the match-up:

Srikanth has been critical to India’s success at the Thomas Cup this year, winning all five matches he’s played. His strokeplay is as effortless as ever but there’s a grit to the Indian that’s not often been on display over the last few seasons.

He had to dig deep to pull out a crucial 21-18, 12-21, 21-15 win over Anders Antonsen in the semifinal against Denmark and he’ll probably be tested once again by Asian Games gold medallist Christie, who himself has found a rich vein of form this year after a few dry seasons.

Christie has beaten Srikanth twice this season already but he’s coming off a surprise defeat to Kenta Nishimoto of Japan in the Thomas Cup semis – which made Indonesia’s progress to the final a lot more challenging than it needed to be. 

First doubles: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty win 18-21, 23-21, 21-19 against Mohammad Ahsan/ Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo

THIRD GAME

21-19: Chirag's cross court kill find the vacant left corner!!! India leads 2-0.

Warning to Satwik for time wasting. A yellow card.

20-19: Smashes (read thunderbolts). One after the other from Ahsan. One match point saved.

20-18: Two match points for India!

19-18: Satwik sends the cross court smash towards Ahsan who lifts it perfectly for Chirag. The Indian sends cross court smash towards Sukamuljo who does not manage to get anything on it.

18-18: Umpires asks for an instant review after initially calling Satwik's lift long and it had landed on the line.

17-18: Satwik misjudges as Ahsan's down the line smash finds the line. Only just but that'll do.

17-17: Satwik sees Sukamuljo closing in and sends a quick drive down the right.

16-17: Weack backhand return from Chirag after a weak serve. Point for Indonesia.

16-16: Error at the net from Ahsan. All square.

15-16: Satwik hits the smash directly at Ahsan. One point in it now.

13-16: Two deceptive cross-court backhand shots from Ahsan had Satwik running and eventually Sukamuljo buries the smash to win the point.

13-15: Satwik find the left corner vacant mid-rally and sends the smash. Ahsan's return travels only as far as the net.

12-14: Chirag reads Ahsan's serve well and kills the point quickly.

11-14: It is all falling apart for the Indians all of a sudden. Chirag hits one into the net.

11-13: Four straight points for the Indonesians post the mid-game interval.

11-10: Satwik fails to connect cleanly while retrieving Ahsan's smash down the middle and the shuttle hits the net.

11-9: Satwik and Chirag have a slender two-point lead at the final mid-game interval.

10-7: Satwik hits a quick drive on Ahsan's serve and Sukamuljo has no time to react.

9-6: Smooth play from the Indians. Chirag wins the point by dropping one and getting Sukamuljo to make an error going for the net shot.

8-6: Extraordinary. Indonesians kept sending one jump smash after another but Satwik kept defending before Chirag turned it around and finished it with a body smash on Ahsan.

6-5: Spoke too soon as Ahsan smashes one down the middle.

6-4: Ahsan seems to be struggling here. A very weak return from the Indonesian goes off the court.

5-3: Chirag hits one drop shot down to Sukamuljo's right and he injects no power in the return.

3-2: Drift favours the Indian pair as Ahsan's clear goes long.

2-2: Chirag loses his shape as he crouches at the same time when Sukamuljo hits the smash.

1-1: Satwik's cross-court backhand goes wide.

1-0: Weak net shot from Sukamuljo. First point of the decider goes to India.

SECOND GAME

23-21: EVEN STEVENS!!!! Chirag buries the final kill into the net. One game all.

22-21: Now, Indians have a game point opportunity as Indonesians let it go only to see the shuttle land on the baseline.

21-21: Excellent body smash by Satwik on Ahsan saves one more.

20-21: Fourth match point for the Indonesians as they defend valiantly before Chirag hits one into the net.

20-20: All three match points saved by the Indians. Wow!

19-20: Sukamuljo has hit the simplest of the kills into the net.

17-20: Wonderful interception at the net from Sukamuljo earns the Indonesians three match points.

17-19: With Sukamuljo on the ground, it was easy for Chirag to target Ahsan with the body smash. Two point game now.

16-19: Sukamuljo mistimes his jump and his drop shot goes into the net instead of beyond it.

15-19: CHALLENGE: The Indonesians feel Ahsan's serve was fine but at the replay shows, it was indeed short.

14-19: Chirag saves one smash with a dive but eventually loses the point by hitting one return into the net.

14-18: This has been an amazing turnaround in the second half of this game by the Indonesians.

14-16: Satwik misreads Sukamuljo's flick serve and hits the smash into the net.

14-14: Lethal body smash by Chirag and Sukamuljo is helpless.

13-14: And before you know it, the Indonesian pair takes the lead!

13-12: Another short serve from Satwik. He can't afford to gift away points like that.

12-11: CHALLENGE. Indonesians think Ahsan's clear, left by the Indian pair, caught the line and they are right.

12-9: Indonesians cut down the deficit to three with some quick shots at the net.

11-6: Brilliant flick serve from Satwik goes over Ahsan's head and lands inside the baseline. Five-point lead at the halfway stage.

9-5: Chirag runs mid-rally to change his rally but no worries as Satwik holds fort and by the time Chirag returns, the Indonesian pair hits one into the net.

7-5: Acrobatic stuff from Sukamuljo from the back of the court. Jump smash straight at Chirag's feet.

5-4: Sukamuljo, ready for a net serve from Satwik, responds with a quick kill.

4-3: Sideways drift takes Chirag's cross court backhand wide.

3-2: Thunderous smash from Ahsan and Satwik had no chance to return it.

2-1: Brave defense from the Indonesians including some outrageous behind-the-back backhands but a misunderstanding between the two means Satwik's drive lands in.

FIRST GAME

18-21: They only needed one. Opening game goes to Ahsan and Sukamuljo.

18-20: Two game points for Indonesians.

18-19: Clutch serve from Chirag. Just over the net and he finishes with a quick kill.

16-19: Chirag lets it go but to his despair, the shuttle lands in the alley.

16-18: Four straight points for the Indian pair. Who saw that coming!

14-18: Best rally of this match so far as both teams play patiently before Ahsan misjudges Chirag's lift which lands well inside the baseline.

12-17: A flurry of jump smashes from the back of the court by Chirag and he eventually draws a weak return from the Indonesians.

11-17: CHALLENGE: It looked like Satwik's serve was short and the replay shows that it indeed was. Indians waste a challenge.

10-16: Indonesians have stretched their lead to six points. Talk about momentum.

10-14: Excellent drop shot from Ahsan sets up the rally and Sukamuljo kills it easily.

10-13: Another careless error from Chirag as he buries one into the net.

10-11: Indians resume the game by winning another point courtesy of a strong body smash from Satwik on Ahsan.

9-11: Satwik gets too eager and hits the smash into the net. Ahsan and Sukamuljo with a two-point lead at the mid-game interval.

8-8: Satwik's body smash is too strong for Sukamuljo and his return goes wayward.

7-7: Not for long. Error at the net from Ahsan.

6-7: Indonesians move ahead as Sukamuljo catches Satwik off guard with a cross court smash.

5-4: Indonesians were in all sorts of trouble as they lad left the back court empty but somehow, they defend one smash after another from Chirag and the Indian hits one into the net.

4-2: Shetty makes it look like he is going for the body smash at Sukamuljo but at the end moment, goes cross court and hits Ahsan.

2-2: Short serve from Satwik.

1-0: Shetty easily kills a lose return from the Indonesians.

----------

Warm-up is done. All set for first doubles!

After a SENsational start from Lakshya start, the dynamic duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will look to extend India's lead when it faces makeshift Indonesian pair of Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo.

Here's the match-up:

Like the Malaysians, and Denmark before them, Indonesia is fielding a scratch pairing – Kevin Sanjaya usually partners Marcus Gideon, while Mohammad Ahsan is paired with Hendra Setiawan. While Indonesia would have loved to go with the two original pairings, an injury to Gideon has forced a rethink.

Although Indonesia fielded Sanjaya with Bagas Maulana in the tie against Thailand, every subsequent match has seen one of the minions (Kevin and Gideon) partner Ahsan. While the original pairings were almost unbeatable, scratch pairs are invariably vulnerable.

Sanjaya and Ahsan went down to Kang Minhyuk and Seo Seungjae of Korea before beating the World No. 4 pair of Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi of Japan in the semis. But that was a hard match in which they were down three game points in the opener and a match point in the decider before sneaking out a 22-20, 8-21, 24-22 win.

All this means Chirag Shetty and Satwik Rankireddy, who otherwise had a dismal 0-11 record against the combination of Kevin and Gideon and lost 2-3 record against Ahsan and Setiawan, will go into their doubles tie having won their only tie against Sanjaya and Ahsan – 18-21, 21-18, 24-22 in the Badminton Asia Championships in 2018.

 

First singles: Lakshya Sen wins 8-21, 21-17, 21-16 against Anthony Ginting

THIRD GAME

21-16: Lakshya wins the final battle of the net chords to give India 1-0 lead.

20-16: Four match points for Lakshya as Ginting drives it wide.

18-16: Ginting's body smash draws a weak return from Lakshya as the shuttle flies off the court. Two point game.

18-14: Lakshya is on a roll now! Goes for the flick serve, gets the lift from Ginting and ends it with a smash.

16-14: Lakshya makes Ginting go deep with a lovely drive and then finished the point with a cross-court backhand drop shot.

15-14: Lakshya tries the flick serve but Ginting is on to it in a flash with a jump smash down the line.

14-13: Net chord. Ginting had alll the time in the world to kill the point but instead, hits it into the net chord and the shuttles return to his side of the court.

13-12: Lakshya leads for the first time in this game as he directs his drives at Ginting who hits one into the net.

12-12: Parity restored. Lakshya finally gets one to land out of Ginting's reach.

11-12: One point game. Excellent drop shot from Lakshya.

10-12: Ginting tries to deceive Lakshya with a quick drive but ends up hitting the net.

9-12: Ginting's down-the-line smashes are missing THE LINE by miles.

8-11: Wayword smash from Ginting. Lakshya wins the point after some brilliant bit of defending at the net.

7-11: After a couple of net shots, Ginting lifts it, Lakshya goes back but looks like he slipped while playing the smash which hits the net.

7-9: Lakshya surprises Ginting with a smash down the centre of the court and draws a weak return from the Indonesian.

6-9: Short lift from Lakshya and Ginting finishes it with a straighter kill shot.

6-8: Lakshya ups the pace and ends the rally with a cross court smash.

5-8: Ginting plays it deep into Lakshya's forehand, gets the desired lift and sends it down the middle of the court.

4-7: Difficult net shot from Lakshya but he executes it perfectly.

3-7: Ginting engages Lakshya in the net shots, get the lift and then whacks the shuttle with a jump smash.

3-6: Ginting tries to deceive Lakshya with the flick serve who reads it early and hits a powerful cross-court smash.

1-5: Not enough height on the lift from Lakshya and Ginting hits a down on-the-line smash.

1-4: Immaculate net shot from Ginting to finish the rally.

1-2: Good judgement from Lakshya as Ginting's lift lands just past the baseline.

0-1: The Indian tries to be a bit too cheeky with the net shot but ends up delaying it so much that it barely even makes it to the net.

SECOND GAME

21-17: Lakshya levels things up with an accurate cross-court smash.

20-17: Ginting saves another game point with a lovely drop shot near the net.

20-16: Short serve from Lakshya.

19-15: Blazing smash from Lakshya. He got into position so quickly.

18-15: Ginting's wayward lift gifts Lakshya one more point.

17-15: Lakshya does well to retrieve Ginting's cross court smash but the drift makes the shuttle land wide.

17-13: Ginting looking to finish things off quickly and committing mistakes. A reckless down-the-line smash lands wide.

16-13: Well, not for long. The very next point, he gets a favour from the net chord.

15-13: Lakshya's backhand hits the net chord but does not get lucky like Ginting.

14-12: The lift from Lakshya is not high enough. Ginting leaps into the area and thrashes it into the court on Lakshya's half.

14-11: Ginting sends a simple down-the-line smash wide.

13-11: Much needed point for Lakshya.

12-11: Make that one. Ginting reads it early and buries the cross-court smash.

12-10: Ginting reduces the deficit to two in next to no time.

11-7: Weak return from Ginting hits the net. This time, the Indian has a four-point lead at the halfway stage.

10-6: Lucky point for Ginting. He goes for the drive, the shuttle takes a deflection off the net chord and lands inside the Indian's half who was at the back of the court.

9-5: Unbelievable defense from Lakshya. A forty-six shot rally that had Lakshya running all over the place but he does not relent and Ginting eventually lifts one wide.

7-4: Quick drive from Ginting draws the error from the Indian as he hits it into the net.

6-3: Straight as an arrow. Bang on the line. Brilliant down-the-line smash from Lakshya.

4-3: UNSUCCESSFUL CHALLENGE FROM LAKSHYA. The line judge correctly calls it out as Ginting let the drift carry the birdie into the side alleys.

4-2: Ginting misjudges. He returns one that was possibly sent wide from Lakshya and the result is another shot that hits the net.

3-2: Error at the net from Ginting.

1-1: Finally, a release shot for Lakshya. A terrific cross-court smash.

FIRST GAME

8-21: Ginting wins the opening game at the second time of asking. Blistering start for the Indonesian. Just 17 minutes!

7-19: Lovely cross court net shot from Ginting.

7-17: Ginting shows how its done. He first defends Lakshya's cross court smash and then hits one back to which, the Indian has no answer.

7-16: Delightful drop from Ginting. Lakshya was too far back and slips in the effort to retrieve.

7-14: Ginting in full command. Draws Lakshya towards the net, gets the lift, goes back and smashes it past the Indian.

7-11: Short lift from Lakshya towards the end and Ginting pounces on it as the kill hits Lakshya. Four-point lead for the Indonesian at the mid-game interval.

7-10: Lakshya's gentle lift from the net goes over the baseline courtesy of the drift. Tough conditions.

7-9: Ginting controls the rally before finishing it with a powerful jump smash down to Lakshya's right.

6-8: Beautiful lift from Ginting. Totally deceives Lakshya as he lets it go only to see it land well inside the baseline.

6-6: Lakshya equalises as Ginting's attempted net shot takes a deflection off the net chord and falls into the side alley.

4-5: Quick cross court smash from Ginting. Too much power in it and the Indian fails to send it over the net.

3-3: A couple of delightful drop shots from Ginting and Lakshya eventually fails to retrieve one.

3-2: Lakshya takes the lead. He set it up with a down-the-line smash, got the lift from Ginting and killed it at the net.

1-2: Lakshya open his account as Ginting errors at the net.

0-2: Kill from Ginting hits Lakshya bang in the face.

0-1: First point goes to the Indonesian as the drift carries Lakshya's lift over the baseline.

------------

Warm-up is done. Game time!

11:37 AM: Lakshya Sen and Anthony Ginting have entered the Arena for the opening singles.

11:30 AM: It's time.

11:25 AM: With five minutes to go for the opening singles between Lakshya Sen and Anthony Ginting, here's a look at the match-up:

India has made it to the historic final in the Thomas Cup partly because of Lakshya Sen’s high ranking that has enabled the side to field Kidambi Srikanth and H. S. Prannoy as its second and third choice singles players. Lakshya Sen’s own form, though, hasn’t quite matched up.

He’s lost every match against a higher-ranked player (Chou Tien Chen, Lee Zii Jia and Viktor Axelsen), leaving India trailing on each occasion. He faces another higher-ranked player in Olympic bronze medallist Anthony Ginting.

This is a stylistic matchup that might work in the Indian’s favour, though. The Indonesian loves fast exchanges and the last (and only) time the two played – just a couple of months ago at the German Open – he was badly frustrated by the Indian’s frenetic defence in a 21-7 21-9 loss.

However, while Ginting has also lost a couple of matches to Loh Kean Yew and Kunlavut Vitidsarn early in the tournament, he seems to have found some form, of late, picking up a crucial win over Kento Momota of Japan in the semifinal.

11:15 AM: Just 15 minutes to go for this blockbuster summit clash. Till the live action starts, here's a glimpse of the winning moment from India's semifinal victory over Denmark.

10:57 AM: In case you missed it, Korean women's badminton team came from 1-2 down to upset 15-time champion China in the Uber Cup Final on Saturday. Here are the highlights of a thrilling summit clash:

 

10:45 AM: India has made one change to its lineup from semifinals. For the second doubles, M.R. Arjun and Dhruv Kapila replace the lower-ranked duo of Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala.

10:35 AM: While BAI's selection criteria allowed direct entry into the Thomas Cup squad only to players in the top 16 in singles, the governing body made an exception for World No. 23 H S Prannoy rewarding him for his good performances in recent tournaments. The decision has done wonders for the side as Prannoy won both the deciding third singles in the quarterfinals and semifinals.

Prannoy after India's quarterfinal win over Malaysia - “This is the one big event that I’ve dreamt of winning a medal in for the last decade. We tried our best in the past too but we could never ever come close. This is a huge moment for me. It’s not just a victory for me but for all the people who believed in me. This is probably one of the biggest days in my career. I don’t think I’ve been this happy in the last few years.” Read the full piece by Jonathan Selvaraj here:

10:20 AM: “The Thomas Cup is the biggest tournament in team badminton. Making the finals means you stand eye to eye with the best nations in world badminton. The magnitude of an Indian team reaching the final is what I’d imagine the team that made the cricket World Cup finals back in 1983” - Pullela Gopichand. Read the entire piece by Jonathan Selvaraj here:

10:10 AM: Here's how the two sides have performed so far at this edition of the Thomas Cup:

MATCH PREVIEW

Indian men's badminton team takes on 14-time champion Indonesia in its maiden Thomas Cup Final at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand on Sunday.

Having already bettered its best performance of reaching the semifinals in 1952, 1955 and 1979 editions, India will look to upset the mighty Indonesians to lift the trophy for the first time in the 73-year history of the tournament.

 

India reached the summit clash by beating 2016 champion Denmark 3-2 in a thrilling semifinal on Friday. H S Prannoy came from a game down to win the third and deciding singles against Rasmus Gemke after the two sides were tied 2-2 at the end of two singles and two doubles matches. The winning pattern was similar to India's quarterfinal where it defeated five-time champion Malaysia 3-2 courtesy of Prannoy beating Leong Jun Hao in the final singles in straight games.

India was drawn to face Malaysia in the last eight fixture after it finished second in Group C where it beat both Germany and Canada 5-0 before suffering a 2-3 loss against the Chinese Taipei side.

Where to watch?

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment