Ashmita Chaliha clinches maiden BWF World Tour title at Korea Masters

India’s Ashmita Chaliha clinched her first BWF World Tour title after beating China’s fourth-seeded Han Qian Xi in the women’s singles final of the Korea Masters Super 300 in Asan on Sunday (Aug 9). The 26-year-old from Assam recovered from a slow start and held her nerve in a closely contested decider to win 14-21, 21-14, 21-14 in 53 minutes.

During the match, Ashmita started the opening game well, taking an early 3-0 lead and later moving 9-5 ahead, however, Han fought back strongly and levelled the score at 11-11. The Chinese player then took control with a run of points and comfortably closed out the game 21-14.

The Indian shuttler responded impressively in the second game, playing more aggressively to secure a 21-14 win.

Ashmita fought back after trailing 9-11 in the decider, taking control to lead 19-14 before sealing the match to secure the biggest title of her career.

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Ashmita’s victory is even more significant given her injury struggles. She suffered a medial meniscus tear in her right knee during the Korea Open in 2024 and underwent surgery followed by a long rehabilitation period.

She returned to competition in Feb the following year and played 14 tournaments. After competing in two events this year, she spent three months working on her strength and fitness to prepare for a full BWF calendar.

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Her recent performances showed that she was returning to her best, as she reached the quarter-finals at the China Masters and Malaysia Masters before making the semi-finals of the Macau Open.

The world No. 50 trains under Park Tae-Sang at the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati.

With inputs from agencies