Indian badminton player Rounak Chouhan caused a major upset at the US Open tournament by defeating World No. 6 Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei in straight games. Chouhan, ranked 80th globally, secured a 21-17, 26-24 victory, setting up a quarterfinal clash with Misha Zilberman of Israel.
Chouhan, aged 18 and a key member of India’s bronze medal-winning world junior team, maintained pressure on his opponent throughout the match. Despite Chou leading initially, Chouhan staged a remarkable comeback, winning six consecutive points to claim the first game.
In the second game, Chou took a commanding 17-11 lead, but Chouhan once again displayed resilience by leveling the score with six consecutive points. The match intensified with both players neck and neck, with Chouhan saving multiple game points before eventually sealing victory in 49 minutes.
Rounak Chouhan secured his spot in the main draw by defeating Enogat Roy of France and Kuo Kuan Lin of Chinese Taipei in the qualifiers. He continued his winning streak by overcoming S Sankar Muthusamy to advance to the second round.
In the women’s singles category, Tanvi Sharma, Rakshitha Sree, and Devika Sihag also progressed to the quarterfinals. Tanvi defeated Tung Ciou-Tong, Rakshitha overcame Chen Su Yu, and Devika beat Tonrug Saeheng to secure their spots in the next round.
Concluding the successful day for India, Kidambi Srikanth claimed a victory over Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia with a scoreline of 21-14, 21-13.
