NDA (II) 2016 General Ability Test · Question 125 of 150

Correct — B, Denmark. Denmark beat Indonesia 3-2 in the final of the 2016 Thomas Cup at the Kunshan Sports Centre in Kunshan, Jiangsu province, China, on 22 May 2016. Viktor Axelsen opened the tie by beating Tommy Sugiarto 21-17, 21-18, and the contest went the full five matches. It was Denmark's first Thomas Cup, and the only time the trophy has gone to a country outside Asia — which is why the result is remembered as one of the upsets of the badminton decade and why it made an obvious question for a paper set four months later.

• (a)Indonesia — Runners-up in 2016, and the most successful nation in the history of the competition with fourteen titles. That record is exactly what makes this the strongest distractor — a candidate guessing on general knowledge of badminton would put Indonesia first.
• (c)China — The classic mix-up, because China did win at that same 2016 tournament — but the Uber Cup, the women's team event, beating South Korea. China also hosted the whole competition at Kunshan. It has twelve Thomas Cups to its name, just not this one.
• (d)Malaysia — A five-time winner and a traditional power in the men's team event, but its titles are historical and it did not reach the 2016 final.

The Thomas Cup is the world men's team championship in badminton, run by the Badminton World Federation. The first tournament was held in 1948-49, and since 1982 it has been staged every two years, usually alongside the Uber Cup, its women's counterpart. A tie is decided over five matches — three singles and two doubles — so a team needs depth across both disciplines rather than one outstanding player. Indonesia leads the all-time list with fourteen titles, followed by China with twelve and Malaysia with five.

Sports questions date faster than almost anything else in the GAT, so fix this one to its year and then note what has happened since. India had no part in the 2016 story — seeded seventh, the men went out in the group stage, though the Indian women reached the Uber Cup semi-final. Six years later that changed completely: India won the Thomas Cup for the first time in 2022, beating the holders Indonesia 3-0, and became only the sixth nation ever to lift it. China won in 2018, Indonesia in 2020, and China again in 2024 and 2026. So a student reading this card should hold two facts at once — Denmark won in 2016, and India's own breakthrough came in 2022.

• Denmark beat Indonesia 3-2 in the 2016 Thomas Cup final at Kunshan, China, on 22 May 2016.
• It was Denmark's first Thomas Cup and the only one won by a nation outside Asia.
• China won the 2016 Uber Cup, the women's team event held at the same venue, beating South Korea.
• India won the Thomas Cup for the first time in 2022, beating Indonesia 3-0 to become the sixth nation ever to win it.

• Swapping the Thomas Cup with the Uber Cup; the two are held together and are won by different teams in the same week.
• Guessing the most decorated nation rather than recalling the year's actual result.
• Carrying a 2016 winner forward as if it were the current holder.

The GAT reliably includes two or three sports items drawn from the twelve months before the paper, almost always in the form 'who won X in year Y', so revise by trophy and year rather than by player.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The Uber Cup in badminton is the world team championship for

  • (a)men
  • (b)women
  • (c)mixed teams
  • (d)juniors

  Answer(b) women — the Thomas Cup is the men's equivalent, and the two are usually staged together.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  India won the Thomas Cup for the first time in

  • (a)2016
  • (b)2018
  • (c)2020
  • (d)2022

  Answer(d) 2022 — India beat the holders Indonesia 3-0 to become the sixth nation ever to win the trophy.