There is something about team events that seems to bring out the best in Indian badminton.
A young Indian women's badminton team secured a historic first medal at the Badminton Asia Team Championship, beating the likes of China and Japan to reach the final in what has been a week of punching above their weight... and winning. This comes a day after Indian men's team, favourites for a medal as defending Thomas Cup champions, were knocked out by Japan in the quarterfinals.
On a day PV Sindhu couldn't win either of her matches, two 20-years-olds striving to regain form, a 24-year-old trying to find her feet in a competitive tour and a 17-year-old making her international debut stepped up for India.
Gayatri Gopichand-Treesa Jolly, Ashmita Chaliha and Anmol Kharb won their respective matches for a 3-2 win over Japan in the semifinals on Saturday in Malaysia. This came a few days after beating heavyweights China in the group stage, also 3-2 with teenager Anmol prevailing in a tricky decider.
These are not results we see often, not with the Indian women's team that has struggled with depth and consistency since the time of veterans Saina Nehwal and Jwala Gutta, who were part of the team that won two Uber Cup medals, back in 2014 and 2016.
This win in 2024 is as extraordinary as it was unexpected.
Consider these numbers:
Gayatri Gopichand-Treesa Jolly, world No 32 vs Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida, world No 6
Result: India win 21-17, 16-21, 22-20Ashmita Chaliha, world No 53 vs Nozomi Okuhara, world No 20
Result: India win 21-17, 21-14Anmol Kharb, world No 472 vs Natsuki Nidaira, world No 29
Result: India win 21-14, 21-18
Japan were not at their full strength, missing world No. 4 Akane Yamaguchi, world No. 7 pair of Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota and world No. 8 combination of Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara. But even then, the disparity in rankings and experience was immense for the young Indian team. Okuhara is a former world champion, Matsuyama-Shida are former All England champions.
But reputation, or the odds, didn't matter on Saturday.
At every stage, it was India who were on the backfoot. But after every setback, someone stepped up to overtake their opponents. What makes it even more remarkable was that that someone wasn't PV Sindhu.
Sindhu, who is making a comeback after a four-month injury layoff, lost 13-21, 20-22 to Aya Ohori - a player she had a 13-0 head-to-head against - in the first match. The Indian star has had a reasonably successful comeback with two straight wins before but couldn't give the team a winning start this time.
In the second, the onus was on Treesa-Gayatri, who'd been waylaid by injuries and poor form in a forgettable 2023 season. Not India's No 1 pair anymore, they were playing the first doubles only because Tanisha Crasto was withdrawn from the tie. They were up against a pair they'd not beaten before with the most recent loss being a tough, three-game India Open last month. But as they did at the Mixed Team Asian Championship last year, they rode on the wave of team support and battled for a nervy, narrow, extra time win. This was one of their best wins in a while, showing the best of their power-and-precision game that made them so good as teenagers.
Ashmita, who has long been heralded as the next hope in women's singles but has struggled with consistency, used the platform to show just why she is rated so highly. The southpaw was all about attack with crafty drops and smashes overcoming a player of Okuhara's calibre. Okuhara may not be at the champion level she once was, but Ashmita's confidence and skills to counter her were remarkable. She then clinched the match with a clever service return and raised both arms in the air as Okuhara stood still, a frame that spoke the proverbial thousand words.
The baton was then passed to the two most experienced players - Sindhu, chosen to play doubles with 34-year-old Ashwini Ponnappa. It was a scratch pairing, a tactic often used in the past where Sindhu or Saina would play the second doubles to bolster the team's depth. It was also a risk for Sindhu to play two matches in a day. It didn't work this time, as world No. 11 pair of Rena Miyaura and Ayako Sakuramoto comfortably won 21-14, 21-11.
And it all came down to a 17-year-old rookie ranked 472 in the world. These numbers didn't matter to national champion Anmol. She had already won the decider against China in her first outing, but that was a no-pressure group stage match. This was a semifinal with all eyes on her and she put up a show in the spotlight.
The Haryana player has a natural flair with the racquet and a firecracker energy to match it, a vibe that brought out a constant smile from national coach Gopichand on the chair as she won in straight games.
There were a couple of tricky moments in the second, when Nidaira drew level at 16-16 and the background noise from the teams was peaking. But Anmol stayed calm and when the shuttle sailed long on match point, was her expressive self again at the lovely scenes of celebration followed.
The team rushed on to court, Treesa lifting her in delight and everyone came together to form an excited huddle. There is no official broadcast in India so we couldn't see other angled or even hear them, but the joy was evident through the grainy, one-camera footage too. This win is a big deal.
Next up is the final test against Thailand, who beat Indonesia 3-1. Another team with almost all players ranked higher than the Indians, this one at full-strength. With the likes of Supanida Katethong, who has troubled Sindhu lately, world No 10 Jongkolphan Kititharakul-Rawinda Prajongjai, who have the number of Treesa-Gayatri (if they play the first doubles again) as well as Busanan Ongbamrungphan and the Aimsaard sisters, Thailand will start as favourites.
But as they have shown through this week, as the Indian men's team showed at the Thomas Cup two years back and as Indian badminton players have been regularly showing in the last few years, no odds are too tough for this unit.
Whether they bring home a gold or a silver medal, this will go down as a special week for Indian badminton and bring in a new hope for the women's game in India.
NOTE: The BATC Final will be available on YouTube on Sunday morning, there is no telecast in India as if now.