Asian Games 2023: Recounting the 3 best badminton moments for India

India's badminton contingent had an impressive showing at the Asian Games 2023, with the shuttlers returning home with three medals. With a gold, silver and bronze in their pocket, this marks India's best badminton performance at the games.

One of the most memorable moments from the Hangzhou Asian Games was HS Prannoy claiming the bronze in the men's singles event.

The star Indian shuttler, who recently won bronze at the BWF World Championships, was struggling with a back injury that raised doubts if he would be able to perform at his best.

However, Prannoy didn't let his injury hamper his game, playing with a taped-up back in his quarterfinals against Malaysian Lee Zee Jia. After winning the first set against Lee 21-16, the Indian lost the second game 21-23, before making a memorable 22-20 comeback in the last set.

While he lost his semi-finals to China's eventual gold medalist Li Shi Feng, Prannoy had already booked himself a bronze. This medal marked India's first podium finish at the men's singles event of the Asian Games after Syed Modi's bronze in 1982.

Another memorable moment for Indian badminton fans was the men's team event silver. After a hard-fought victory against South Korea in the semifinals, a maiden gold medal was very much on the cards for India at the Asian Games.

Lakshya Sen and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty won their first two matches, giving India a 2-0 lead against China in the final. Unfortunately, the men's team wasn't able to capitalize on their lead, and the next three games went to China.

However, this marked India's first silver in the badminton team events at the Asian Games. This was also the country's second-ever silver in the Asian Games badminton event after PV Sindhu's defeat in the finals in 2018 at Jakarta.

Asian Games 2023: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty claim historic gold

India's best moment at the 2023 Games was without a doubt Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty's top of the podium finish in the men's doubles category.

The duo looked invincible from the beginning of the individual events. They eventually stormed to gold after beating surprise South Korean finalists Choi Sol Gyu and Kim Won Ho 21-18, 21-16.

This medal ended India's wait for a badminton gold at the Asian Games and also marked the first time an Indian men's doubles pair has finished on the podium since the 1982 Games.