Together we rise: Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand's bronze at Worlds is both validation and a new beginning

          Shi Tang/Getty Images
          • Zenia D'Cunha in New Delhi
          Aug 23, 2026, 12:00 AM ET

          When Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly came out of the arena after their fairytale run at the home World Championships ended in the semifinals, they had a poster which Treesa said a child had given them. It said - "Together we rise higher" amid other motivational phrases. It was a throwaway moment but that one quote may just be the motto for the Indian women's doubles pair - together they rise higher.

          Gayatri and Treesa, at 23 years of age, won India's only second World Championship medal in women's doubles, 15 years after the first. They finished Top 4 in the world after their ranking plummeted to 39 post injury layoff. They knocked out three seeded pairs to ensure India had at least one medal to celebrate in an otherwise bleak World Championships. They did this all together, not simply because that's how doubles badminton functions, but because know how they expertly balance each other out, on and off court.

          This mutual balance shows up in many big and small ways; Treesa's powerful smash being set up by Gayatri's smart court craft. The newer tactical rotation of Gayatri taking back line control while Treesa moves to the front. Gayatri being the picture of calm while Treesa unleashes her emotions. Treesa taking most of the conversational duties while a soft-spoken Gayatri usually prefers to say less.

          Striking this balance has been integral to this week's success, because it backed the game plan that coach Pullela Gopichand has been trying to set - adding variety while improving physicality. In the weeks away from the tour due to injury, they used the time to fine-tune court rotation and build better physicality, both big weapons to upgrade in women's doubles.

          The results were seen in how they outwitted the Japanese seventh seed's defence in the Round of 16 with tactical role rotation on court. In the quarterfinals against the legendary Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian of China, the balance shone through in the mentality - with Jia praising them for having a better mindset than the Chinese pair on the day, a compliment that got a big smile out of them when relayed.

          Even in their semifinal loss to the world No 1 and defending champions from China - Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning (21-18, 13-21, 8-21), they managed to take the first game coming back from losing 10 straight points. But they faltered against the elevated attack of the Chinese pair, who would say that they had strategies prepared specifically for the Indian pair.

          That the world No 1 pair had to reach a higher gear is proof of how much the Indians have elevated their game style. It wasn't the tactics that cost them, but a lack of confidence.

          "The few mistakes made us a little bit unconfident and kind of doubtful about every stroke. I feel like we went for more defense, and we cannot play against them defensively," said Treesa after.

          Defensive here was reverting to type - Treesa at the back and Gayatri at the net. "She played very good today; in the backcourt she was controlling well. Maybe if I had supported from the net, we could have pulled off the second set," Gayatri said.

          That said, it's not entirely fair to fault a new skill they are working on. Both Gayatri and Treesa have spoken about this through the week about switching roles in the front and back court but It's only been a few weeks since they put this plan into practice.

          "We worked on it [rotation] in the last six weeks - which has helped, and it's good to see what you practice actually gives you dividends on court," Gopichand said. "It's a revelation how Treesa kept charging at the net and started taking control. Gayatri's back court has been very good."

          Switching between on court roles is not a novel idea, but it has injected a new energy in this pairing. Treesa's powerful smash is spoken about very often, but a more subtle gain has been Gayatri's control in what has been a very challenging arena when it comes to wind and drift conditions.

          Their former long-time coach Arun Vishnu had spoken about how Gayatri playing at the back court afforded them more control and it was seen on court in the medal win, which led to women's doubles legend like Jia calling her "sharp-minded".

          When this sharpness is added to Treesa's strength, a gateway of opportunity can open up for these two in an evolving women's doubles game. A chance to not only get back in the Top 10 where they belong, but also to do what no other women's doubles pair has done before.

          From that lens, this bronze medal is just the beginning. Something that Treesa was also keen to point out. "We have a long journey in future, I feel like this is just a start. We just need to take this as positively and in a confident way."

          This bronze medal will be a big boost for their young career which has seen much uncertainty in the last four years after being thrust under the spotlight, due to one's surname and the legacy attached to it.

          They were teenagers when they had their first big moment in the sun, reaching the semifinals of the All England Championship in 2022 after being promoted from reserves. They repeated the feat again in 2023, this time as a Top 20 pair at only 20 years of age. But injury setbacks for Gayatri took away time, their Olympic qualifying chances and Treesa even dabbled in mixed doubles briefly as she waited for her partner to get back.

          By 2026, their results started attracting serious negativity - often on social media - with some armchair experts wanting them to be split up and others suggesting they be dropped from the Indian national side.

          And then came the biggest blow of them all - Treesa twisted her ankle in an unfortunate incident during practice, they missed the Badminton Asia Championship and the Uber Cup, and their ranking dropped again. They only had an International Challenge tournament to prepare, which they went and won.

          Yet, when they came to Delhi, they were flying under the radar at a time when Indian badminton was buzzing with multiple medal hopes. They leave as Arjuna Award winners and the only Indians to win a medal at a World Championship at home.

          The balance between those two extremes is also proof of how these two young women have grown on court together, like the poster said.