'Big Hopes' From Teen Shuttler Anmol Kharb After Historic Success in Asia Team Championships, Says Legendary Dinesh Khanna

Who would have thought that a 17-year-old girl would be the architect of India's first gold medal in the Asian Team Championship? In the final match against Thailand, with the score tied at 2-2, Anmol Kharb showed great skill to beat a higher-ranked opponent.

The teenager, in fact, made the do-or-die tie a one-sided affair against World No. 45 Pornpicha Choeikeewong. Anmol won both sets with scores of 21-14, 21-9, helping India win its first-ever title in the championships.

That wasn't a one-off show by Anmol Kharb as she won all three of her singles matches at the Asian Badminton Team Championships. Highly impressed by her performance, former Indian legendary badminton player and 1965 Asian Championship gold medalist Dinesh Khanna heaped praises on the teenager.

"After the score was tied 2-all, it was left to Anmol Kharb," Dinesh Khanna told myKhel. "She's a very young girl playing her first international tournament, and in the team championship, the pressure is tremendous, particularly when you are playing for the gold medal battle and playing the last and deciding match.

"One can imagine the pressure on her. The way she handled the pressure was admirable. We have a lot of hopes from this girl; she played very well."

Khanna, who hails from Punjab, also commented on the team's overall performance, saying: "It's a brilliant performance. This is the first time that we won gold in the Asia Team Championship. It's fantastic.

"The way our girls played, all the credit goes to them. They were up against Japan (semifinals), which is a very formidable team. In the semifinals, they prevailed against them, and in the final against Thailand, they prevailed again. It's an absolutely fantastic performance."

Young guns Anmol Kharb and Ashmita Chaliha played crucial roles in India's historic gold victory. Anmol defeated China's World number 149 Wu Luo Yu in the group stage, followed by victories against Japan's World number 29 Natsuki Nidaira in the semifinal, and Thailand's Pornpicha Choeikeewong in the finals.

On the other hand, in the semis, Ashmita Chaliha defeated former World No 1 and Rio Olympics bronze medallist Nozomi Okuhara. Dinesh Khanna has praised the squad of youngsters, stating, "There are 2-3 women's players who are coming up. This is Anmol's first international tournament at the senior level. She is also the senior National champion, which shows we have good depth. Ashmita Chaliha is a very promising talent, and I have lots of hopes for them as well."