Who is Ayush Shetty, the 6’4” Indian badminton star who won his first BWF World Tour title in US?

Ayush Shetty might not be the biggest name in Indian badminton yet, but the 20-year-old is slowly building a reputation for himself on the international stage. His recent win at the 2025 US Open, a Super 300 event, was a statement that he has arrived and is ready to take the badminton world by storm.

In the semi-finals of the tournament, Ayush faced Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei, who is an experienced player and was the sixth seed. The Mangalore boy pulled off a sensational dive at the net to win a 39-shot rally against Chou, who appeared a sure winner. That point showed his maturity and skills.

Ayush, who is 6 feet and 4 inches tall, later went on to beat Canada’s Brian Yang in the final, lifting his first major senior title and becoming the first Indian men’s singles player to win a senior BWF World Tour title in 2025.

“It means a lot—it’s my first title on the senior circuit. So I’m really happy. There are a lot of positives to take away. I played some excellent badminton here, and I’m looking forward to the Canada Open next week,” he said after the final.

Semifinals action sees Chou Tien Chen and Ayush Shetty go the distance.#BWFWorldTour #USOpen2025 pic.twitter.com/3OLaBbv5dp

— BWF (@bwfmedia) June 29, 2025

Who is Ayush Shetty?

Ayush’s badminton journey started in Sanoor near Karkala in Karnataka, where he watched his father play in the backyard for fun. According to scroll.in, after the Indian prodigy started performing well against local players, his father decided to relocate him to Bengaluru when he was 12 years old.

“The initial few months were tough. But at that point I was only playing state and national level tournaments and not competing internationally, so the financial strain was not much,” Ayush was quoted as saying.

Ayush’s career began to take a positive turn after he won the 2022 All India Junior Ranking Tournament in Bengaluru, following years of hard work and consistent performances in the sub-junior and junior domestic circuit. In 2023, he won the bronze medal at the BWF World Junior Championships, becoming only the sixth Indian male singles player to do so.

Ayush is also a student. He is currently pursuing a BSc in Sports Science at Reva University in Bengaluru. Ayush is ranked world number 31 and is the second-highest ranked Indian men’s singles player after Lakshya Sen. What began as a part-time hobby at the age of 8 has now become Ayush’s only passion - playing badminton.