Krishna Prasad Garaga's comeback is officially underway. The once-banned Indian shuttler just made a major statement at the Vietnam International Challenge 2026. His performance marked a crucial step in rebuilding a career that had been previously derailed by controversy.

Garaga partnered with Pruthvi Krishnamurthy Roy and held an impressive performance on court in the men’s doubles category, making one of the biggest upsets of the tournament by defeating the experienced top-seeded team of Choi Sol Gyu and Goh V Shem 21-15, 21-19.

After the tournament, Garaga shared his reaction on X, opening up emotionally to his achievement.

"🥈 at Vietnam International Challenge. Not the finals performance we wanted—but after 19 months out, this is just the beginning. Feels good to be on the podium... Back competing, back winning, back where I belong. Grateful for my people who stayed through it all."

This campaign marked a significant milestone for the double gold medalist at the South Asian Games, who sought to rebuild his reputation on stage. The 26-year-old previously received a ban for 4 years after he tested positive for human chorionic gonadotropin during an out-of-competition test in February 2024.

After 1.5 years, this ban was overturned by the National Anti-Doping Agency earlier this year in the month of January, ruling that scientific evidence did not prove external use of the substance.

“It was quite tough for me. It was really difficult at times, but somehow it has passed, so I am very relieved that the decision has come on my side,” Krishna told PTI after the ban was overturned.

However, Garaga’s Strong Comeback Fell Just Short in Final

Garaga and Roy played against South Korea’s Song Hyun Cho and Kim Jae Hyeon and defeated them in the semi-finals with a score of  21-11, 23-25, 23-21. The match went on for 1 hour and 22 minutes, the indian pair stayed consistent, and maintained their composure till the end of the game.

Their comeback fell short in the finals against Chinese Taipei’s Huang Tsung-I and Lin Ting-Yu; even if it was a strong fight, Garaga and Roy lost 21-24, 21-18, and 17-21 in a 1-hour 14-minute battle. The Indian pair struggled to keep up their consistency during long rallies.

Even though they narrowly missed out on winning the title and finished as runners-up, they surely left the mark of their strong skillset, especially for Garaga, who’s rebuilding his reputation on the circuit.

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Written by

Aadhya Nalla

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi