From Amiril Muttaqien Meketar
HORSENS (Denmark), April 27 (Bernama) -- India’s rising men’s singles shuttler Ayush Shetty is a man on a mission: to help his country regain the Thomas Cup crown.
The Thomas Cup debutant is aware of the pressures that come with playing in the ongoing Finals, admitting that he does not have the luxury of time to ease into his role or to play it safe.
Backed by a core that historically lifted the 2022 title in Bangkok, the 20-year-old believes India has both the experience and hunger to reach the pinnacle again.
“I think we have a really strong team, and we believe we can. We want to bring the Cup back home.
“We have strong men's singles lineup and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty in doubles... we have the experience and the energy,” he told Bernama.
Apart from Satwiksairaj-Chirag, the other members of India's victorious 2022 team featured here are singles shuttlers Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth and H.S. Prannoy, as well as doubles players M.R. Arjun and Dhruv Kapila.
Ayush, who draws inspiration from former Danish world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen, said that just being in the company of his illustrious compatriots has fuelled his ambition to help India regain the prestigious Thomas Cup crown.
The 2026 Badminton Asia Championships silver medallist is known for his attacking play, but believes he still has room to grow.
The world No. 18 also credited his coach from Indonesia, Irwansyah Adi Pratama, for guiding and pushing him to be among the world’s top 20 players at the moment.
Irwansyah is also widely recognised as the man responsible for the rise of top Indonesian men’s singles players, namely Jonatan Christie and Anthony Sinisuka Ginting.
The 2026 Thomas Cup Finals, which kicked off Friday (April 24), will run until May 3.
-- BERNAMA
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