3 weeks ago
Ashmita Chaliha secures maiden BWF World Tour final berth
Ashmita Chaliha is a badminton player from India.
She played a big semifinal match at a tournament in Korea called the Korea Masters.
Her opponent was another player from India named Rakshitha.
Ashmita won the first game, lost the second game, and then won the third game.
The match lasted 48 minutes.
Winning means she will now play in the final, which is the first time she has ever reached a final on the BWF World Tour.
Two years ago, Ashmita hurt her knee badly at a tournament in Korea and had to leave on crutches.
She had surgery and had to rest for months.
She worked very hard to get strong again, and now she is playing some of the best badminton of her life.
Ashmita Chaliha beat compatriot Rakshitha Sree Santhosh Ramraj 21-13, 16-21, 21-13 in 48 minutes to reach her first BWF World Tour final.
The 26-year-old World No. 50 will face China's Han Qian Xi, ranked No. 35 and seeded fourth, in the Korea Masters Super 300 final.
Chaliha stunned top seed and world No. 22 Hina Akechi of Japan in the quarterfinals.
The win completes a comeback from a medial meniscus tear in her right knee suffered at the 2024 Korea Open, when she left Korea on crutches and her ranking slipped more than 200 places.
India now has women's singles finalists at two consecutive BWF World Tour events, after Tanvi Sharma won the Taipei Open a week earlier.
- Who
- Ashmita Chaliha, a 26-year-old Indian badminton player ranked World No. 50, who beat compatriot Rakshitha Sree Santhosh Ramraj and will face China's Han Qian Xi in the final.
- What
- Chaliha won the Korea Masters Super 300 semifinal to reach her maiden BWF World Tour final.
- Where
- Korea, at the Korea Masters Super 300 tournament.
- When
- Saturday, August 8, 2026, at the Korea Masters 2026, two years after her August 2024 Korea Open knee injury.
- Why
- She is completing a comeback from a medial meniscus tear in her right knee, having stunned top seed Hina Akechi in the quarterfinals and built on strong recent form that included a Macau Open semifinal.
Key facts
- Player
- Ashmita Chaliha (India)
- Age
- 26
- World ranking
- No. 50
- Tournament
- Korea Masters Super 300 (BWF World Tour)
- Semifinal opponent
- Rakshitha Sree Santhosh Ramraj (World No. 49)
- Semifinal score
- 21-13, 16-21, 21-13 in 48 minutes (one report cited the second game as 21-17)
- Final opponent
- Han Qian Xi (China, World No. 35, fourth seed)
- Injury comeback
- Medial meniscus tear in right knee at the 2024 Korea Open; returned to competition in May, now ranked No. 50
Quotes
Geetali
Ashmita Chaliha’s mother
“She was hurt by criticism. She used to wonder ‘they say nice things when I peak but pass negative comments when I lose.’ It would affect her, but now she’s settled into a groove and doesn’t bother.”
indianexpress.com
“PPBA took good care of her and her employers helped land an appointment with Dr. Pardiwala for an emergency surgery in Mumbai in two days which would otherwise take a month and a half.”
indianexpress.com
Sources
Related news
Chaliha Stuns Han to Clinch Maiden BWF World Tour Title
Rakshitha ends Tanvi's run, sets up all-Indian Korea Masters semifinal
Tanvi Sharma leads Indian charge into Korea Masters quarterfinals
Indian Readers Hail Sports Wins, Urge Measured West Asia Diplomacy
Srikanth Crashes Out Early, Tanvi Sharma Wins at Korea Masters
Anmol bows out; Tanvi Sharma advances to Korea Masters quarterfinals
Lakshya Sen Exits China Masters as Indian Shuttlers Advance
Assam to invest ₹1.5 lakh crore in infrastructure by 2031
Letters urge earthquake preparedness, Hasina diplomacy, and youth action
