Cristiano Ronaldo fan shuttler Rounak Chouhan defeats World No 6 at US Open

4 min readUpdated: Jun 26, 2026 01:32 PM IST

Chouhan twice put his formidable attacking game to lethal use to swamp World No 6 Chou Tien Chen with 6 straight points, and won 21-17, 26-24 at the US Open Super 300 in Fullerton, California. (BAI Photo)

Rounak Chouhan started playing badminton at 8, watching his sister and inspired by his mother who played the sport in college. But there was one other thing common in her advice to what he followed in his favourite footballer – Cristiano Ronaldo. “She always says give 100 % even on a bad day. With Ronaldo it’s his hardwork that’s inspiring. I used to watch him and jump every time from the back court. It became muscle memory,” Chouhan would tell The Indian Express after the last Junior World’s.

On Thursday, Chouhan twice put his formidable attacking game to lethal use to swamp World No 6 Chou Tien Chen with 6 straight points, and won 21-17, 26-24 at the US Open Super 300 in Fullerton, California.

Chouhan was on the offensive from the outset against the top seed Taiwanese. But the young Indian from Raipur, Chhattisgarh, showed remarkable guts to take the fight to the 35-year-old known for his impeccable shuttle control. Chouhan literally fought for every point after Tien Chen went 17-15 up in the opener. It was an attack unlike any seen from an Indian MS player at 18, and a sign of things to come.

Having taken the first set with a flurry of 6 points, Chouhan found himself staring at a 11-17 deficit. He again amped it up to level at 17 with 6 points, and then showed stunning fight to beat back 4 set points, and converting his second match point against an opponent built on never-say-die DNA.

The world juniors had been a tough and toughening experience for Chouhan, who trains at NCE, Guwahati. Even as India picked a team bronze, it had hit Chouhan that in international badminton, he needed to shut out noise, focus on breathing and calm himself down. “Focus on strokes, breathe properly,” he would say.

When he followed his sister to the Police Grounds courts at Raipur, it was former coach, now BAI secretary Sanjay Mishra who would guide him. Moving to ITM University’s 8 courts at Uparwara broadened his horizons, and helped him choose badminton over cricket which he played too. It helped that his mother had been an athlete. His father is a businessman.

Lin Dan was his badminton idol, but Cristiano Ronaldo truly proved a totem, as Chouhan dug the Portuguese legend’s work ethic. The way he jumped in the box connecting to headers, how he celebrated imprinted on Chouhan’s brain. Execution was a different matter.

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“Frim when young I learnt to jump frim back court. But the muscle memory needed explosive sessions,” he said. He would start working with S&C trainers at Reliance Foundation just to biomechanically sort out his jump and balance and stability after landing. His back court game is impressive for his age, though work is ongoing on back court variations.

“The half smash, drop I need to use more. I need to learn the art of being aggressive and calm at the same time,” he said, looking for badminton’s golden balance. “I get too aggressive at times.”

His win over Chou Tien Chen addressed a complex goal he had set himself: “After a long high paced rally, the breathing rate is high. How to handle next 10-15 seconds, that’s the goal.” For that, he idolized Lakshya Sen. “He’s calm when playing aggressive.” He would also want consistency at the net.

How does he rate his own defense? “8 on 10,” says the World No 80. Chouhan next plays Israeli Misha Zilberman.

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India’s eternal favourite Kidambi Srikanth also advanced, defeating Malaysian Olympic bronze medallist Lee Zii Jia 21-14, 21-13. Tanvi Sharma, Devika Sihag and Rakshitha Sree also advanced in women’s singles.

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Shivani Naik is a senior sports journalist and Assistant Editor at The Indian Express. She is widely considered one of the leading voices in Indian Olympic sports journalism, particularly known for her deep expertise in badminton, wrestling, and basketball.

Professional Profile

Role: Assistant Editor and Columnist at The Indian Express.

Specialization: While she covers a variety of sports, she is the primary authority on badminton for the publication. She also writes extensively about tennis, track and field, wrestling, and gymnastics.

Writing Style: Her work is characterized by "technical storytelling"—breaking down the biomechanics, tactics, and psychological grit of athletes. She often provides "long reads" that explore the personal journeys of athletes beyond the podium.

Key Topics & Recent Coverage (Late 2025)

Shivani Naik’s recent articles (as of December 2025) focus on the evolving landscape of Indian sports as athletes prepare for the 2026 Asian Games and beyond:

Indian Badminton's "Hulks": She has recently written about a new generation of Indian shuttlers characterized by power and physicality, such as Ayush Shetty and Sathish Karunakaran, marking a shift from the traditionally finesse-based Indian style.

PV Sindhu’s Resurgence: A significant portion of her late-2025 work tracks PV Sindhu’s tactical shifts under new coaching, focusing on her "sparkle" and technical tweaks to break out of career slumps.

The "Group of Death": In December 2025, she provided detailed tactical previews for Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty’s campaign in the BWF World Tour Finals.

Tactical Deep Dives: She frequently explores technical trends, such as the rise of "backhand deception" in modern badminton and the importance of court drift management in international arenas.

Legacy and History: She often revisits the careers of legends like Saina Nehwal and Syed Modi, providing historical context to current Indian successes.

Notable Recent Articles

BWF World Tour Finals: Satwik-Chirag have it all to do to get through proverbial Group of Death. (Dec 2025)

The age of Hulks in Indian badminton is here. (Dec 2025)

Treadmill, Yoganidra and building endurance: The themes that defined the resurgence of Gayatri and Treesa. (Dec 2025)

Ayush Shetty beats Kodai Naraoka: Will 20-year-old be the headline act in 2026? (Nov 2025)

Modern Cinderella tale – featuring An Se-young and a shoe that fits snugly. (Nov 2025)

Other Sports Interests

Beyond the court, Shivani is a passionate follower of South African cricket, sometimes writing emotional columns about her irrational support for the Proteas, which started because of love for Graeme Smith's dour and doughty Test playing style despite being a left-hander, and sustained over curiosity over their heartbreaking habit of losing ICC knockouts.

You can follow her detailed analysis and columns on her official Indian Express profile page. ... Read More

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