Ningbo, April 12 (IANS) Shuttler Ayush Shetty’s incredible run at the Badminton Asia Championships culminated in a runners-up finish after the Indian fell in straight games to second-seeded Shi Yu Qi of China in the men’s singles summit clash here on Sunday.

The 20-year-old Indian, ranked 25th in the world rankings, suffered an 8-21, 10-21 loss against the reigning world champion Yu Qi in the final here at the Ningbo Olympic Center. With his silver medal finish, Ayush became the first Indian men’s singles player since HS Prannoy in 2018 to earn a podium finish at the continental championship.

Ayush’s win over defending champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand in the semifinal made him just the second Indian men’s singles player, and third overall, to enter the Badminton Asia Championships final. A win in the final would have seen him emulate Dinesh Khanna, who became men’s singles champion in 1965.

Hailing from the small town of Sanoor near Karkala in Karnataka, the 2025 US Open champion Ayush had a fairytale campaign, as he had registered major upsets in the tournamnet enroute to the final.

His giant-killing spree began in the opening round, where he stunned world No. 7 and reigning Asian Games champion Li Shi Feng of China. He followed it up with a composed win over Chinese Taipei’s Chi Yu Jen, ranked 20th, to book a quarter-final berth, where he delivered another statement performance by toppling Olympian and world No. 4 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia before knocking out world No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the semifinal.

In the women’s singles final, Korean star An Se-young defeated Wang Zhiyi 21-12, 17-12, 21-18 to win that one trophy she had yet to win among the major championships.

An, 24, Se Young became the first female singles player to cap a career sweep of badminton’s majors – the Olympic Games, world championships, World Tour Finals, All England Open, Asian Games and now the Asian Championships.

–IANS

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