Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela enjoyed their first title win in nearly three years, adding to their celebrations for qualifying to the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2024.

The Indian duo called it a “dream come true” after they became the first home women’s doubles pair to win the Syed Modi India International. In the final on Sunday, Jolly and Pullela rode a tough challenge from China’s Bao Li Jing/Li Qian in the opening game to post a 21-18 21-11 victory – their first title since the Odisha Open in January 2022.

“I’m so happy, I’m not getting any words,” said Jolly. “I used to see players winning this tournament on TV and I’d dream that I’d also win, so I’m very happy.”

“This time we were really positive,” said her partner. “The whole week was intense. Even the semifinal was really tough and challenging and I’m happy we could crack it. The final felt unreal, I’m at a loss for words. We’ve always watched the top pairs at the World Tour Finals and now we’re going to play there!”

The hosts finished the tournament strongly, featuring in all five finals, and winning three. Lakshya Sen and Pusarla V Sindhu dominated their opponents and picked up their first title of the season. After Pusarla had outplayed Chinese left-hander Wu Luo Yu 21-14 21-16, Sen coasted to a 21-6 21-7 result over Singapore’s Jia Heng Jason Teh.

Other Results

» Huang Di/Liu Yang, playing only their second tournament together, held off Pruthvi Roy/Sai Pratheek, 21-14 19-21 21-17.

» New combination Dechapol Puavaranukroh/Supissara Paewsampran won their second title in recent weeks, beating Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto 18-21 21-14 21-8.

What They Said

“It was a crucial point (at 16-7). I had one-two loose points before that, so I was trying to put myself together and play a solid game. From the net I wasn’t playing the right shots.” – Lakshya Sen

“Even though I lost, it’s an achievement for me to play the final. I want to take this as a stepping stone for my future matches. He’s always fast and he can give consistent pressure all the way. Today I couldn’t keep up with his pace. I couldn’t follow his attack and his rallies. I don’t know what happened with me today, I made many unforced errors. But he played very well, so kudos to him.” – Jia Heng Jason Teh

“The crowd was fantastic. It was amazing. It gave me a lot of spirit. Every time I got closer to the win they were shouting loud. It was important for me to win. It’s the end of the year and finishing it off with a win, what else do I need? I’m very happy that I could finish the year with a win. It will be a fresh start from January.” – Pusarla V Sindhu

“It’s our first time in India so it’s very exciting. This was our first time against our opponents, but they have already played other Chinese pairs, so we watched the video recording with our coaches and that’s how we prepared. The win gives me confidence for the next tournaments.” – Huang Di

“In India it’s lucky for me. I won my first tournament in India and I won again here today so India is lucky for me. We talked to each other a lot so there was a lot to learn.” – Dechapol Puavaranukroh

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