Some badminton matches are remembered for the quality of the rallies, some for what they meant to a nation, and some for a single moment of drama or sportsmanship. This list collects memorable badminton matches from different eras and formats: singles and doubles, men’s and women’s, individual and team events. Each entry explains what happened and why it still matters.
We have deliberately kept the Lin Dan versus Lee Chong Wei finals short here, because we make the full case for them in what is the greatest badminton match of all time?
Olympic Classics
Susi Susanti wins Indonesia’s first Olympic gold, Barcelona 1992
In the first ever Olympic women’s singles final, Susi Susanti beat South Korea’s Bang Soo-hyun to win Indonesia’s first Olympic gold medal in any sport. Later the same day, Alan Budikusuma won the men’s singles. The couple, then engaged, became national heroes, and the result helped make badminton Indonesia’s defining Olympic sport.
Why it matters: it showed how much an Olympic title could mean to a badminton nation, and made Susanti one of the sport’s first global female stars.
Lin Dan vs Lee Chong Wei, London 2012
The three-game Olympic final, won 21-19 in the decider by Lin Dan, is the match most often called the greatest of all time. It is the peak of the sport’s greatest rivalry.
Lee Chong Wei vs Lin Dan, Rio 2016 semi-final
Four years later, the rivals met in the semi-final. This time Lee won, taking the deciding game 22-20 after a long, tense finish. It was his first win over Lin Dan at an Olympics, and it turned out to be their last Olympic meeting.
Why it matters: it gave the rivalry a fitting final chapter, even though Lee went on to lose the final to Chen Long.
Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu, Tokyo 2020 women’s doubles final
The unseeded Indonesian pair beat China’s Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan in straight games to win Indonesia’s first Olympic women’s doubles gold. Polii had been disqualified from the London 2012 Olympics in the women’s doubles controversy, which made the win a remarkable story of redemption.
World Championship Epics
Nozomi Okuhara vs PV Sindhu, Glasgow 2017 final
This women’s singles final lasted 110 minutes, the longest women’s singles final in the history of the event. Rally after rally went past 30 or 40 shots, and some lasted far longer. Okuhara won the deciding game 22-20 to become Japan’s first women’s singles world champion.
Why it matters: it is often cited as the best women’s singles match ever played and showed the extreme physical demands of the modern game. Sindhu went on to win the world title in 2019; her full record is in our PV Sindhu career highlights.
Lin Dan vs Lee Chong Wei, London 2011 final
A year before their Olympic final, at the same venue, Lin Dan came back from the brink in the third game to win 23-21. Some fans rate it even higher than 2012.
Kento Momota defends his title, Basel 2019
Momota beat Denmark’s Anders Antonsen in a one-sided final to retain his world title. The match itself was not close, but it was the centrepiece of a record 11-title season and the clearest display of his control-based style. Read more in Kento Momota’s career story.
Unforgettable Team Finals
Team events add national pressure that individual tournaments rarely match. A tie can turn on one match between players outside the top ten.
Japan’s first Thomas Cup, 2014
Japan beat Malaysia 3-2 in the final in New Delhi to win the men’s world team title for the first time. The result marked Japan’s arrival as a complete badminton nation.
Indonesia ends a long wait, Thomas Cup 2020
Played in Aarhus, Denmark, in October 2021 because of the pandemic, the final saw Indonesia beat China 3-0 to win the Thomas Cup for the first time since 2002. For the most successful nation in Thomas Cup history, it ended almost two decades without the trophy.
India’s first Thomas Cup, 2022
India beat Indonesia 3-0 in the final in Bangkok, a result few predicted at the start of the event. We look at what it meant for Indian badminton in our India vs China badminton comparison.
Moments of Skill and Sportsmanship
Taufik Hidayat vs Lin Dan, Asian Games 2006
Taufik retained his Asian Games men’s singles title by beating Lin Dan 21-15, 22-20 in the final in Doha. Matches between the two were a contrast of styles: Taufik’s wristy deception and famous backhand against Lin Dan’s power and speed. Fans who value touch and artistry often name their meetings among their favourite matches.
Carolina Marín and He Bingjiao, Paris 2024 semi-final
Marín was leading her semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao when she suffered a serious knee injury and could not continue. He reached the final and won silver, and on the podium she held up a Spanish team pin in tribute to her injured opponent, one of the most widely shared sportsmanship moments of the Games.
What Makes These Matches Worth Watching
- Tactics under pressure: watch how players change their patterns when the score is tight.
- Movement: the best players reach the shuttle early and recover to the centre quickly, which is easier to see in full matches than in highlights.
- Doubles rotation: in team finals and doubles matches, notice how pairs switch between attacking and defensive formations.
- Composure: in the closest games, the winner is often the player who makes fewer risky choices in the last few points.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the longest famous badminton match?
The 2017 World Championship women’s singles final between Okuhara and Sindhu, at 110 minutes, is the best-known long match. Some matches in the old 15-point, serve-to-score era also ran very long.
Where can I watch classic badminton matches?
The BWF and Olympic official channels publish many full matches and highlights, though availability varies by region.
