Ashmita Chaliha reaches maiden final on BWF World Tour at Korea Masters

Ashmita Chaliha continued her run at the Korea Masters Super 300, overcoming teenage compatriot Rakshitha Sree Santhosh Ramraj 21-13 16-21 21-13 in 48 minutes to reach her maiden BWF World Tour final, here on Saturday.

The 26-year-old Indian, who returned to competition in January after a three-month layoff due to a medial meniscus tear in her right knee, has enjoyed a strong comeback on the BWF Tour, including a semifinal appearance at the Macau Open.

Ashmita, who had stunned top seed and world No. 22 Hina Akechi of Japan in the quarterfinals, came out aggressively and quickly moved from 2-2 to 6-2 in the opening game.

She then reeled off five straight points to establish a 13-6 lead before closing the game out 21-13.

Rakshitha, who had upset third seed and compatriot Tanvi Sharma in the quarterfinals after coming from a game down, responded strongly.

The 19-year-old Pullela Gopichand Academy trainee raced to a 4-1 lead and extended it to 12-6 before Ashmita fought back to 13-12, but Rakshitha held her nerve to force a decider at 21-16.

Ashmita, however, regained control in the third game, opening up an 8-1 lead and maintaining her advantage to seal the match 21-13 and book her first BWF World Tour final berth.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Bridge Desk. It is published from a syndicated feed.)