Swiss Open: Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy storm into final of men's doubles competition
Mar 26, 2023
Basel [Switzerland], March 26 : The top India men's doubles badminton pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy advanced to the final of the ongoing Swiss Open 2023 being held in Basel on Saturday.
Chirag and Satwiksairaj downed the Malaysian pair of Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi. The world number six India doubles pair defeated their world number eight opponents by 21-19, 17-21, 21-17 in a highly-competitive semi-final match to seal their spot in the summit clash of the BWF Super 300 tournament.
In the final on Sunday, Chirag and Satwiksairaj will lock horns with the world number 21 Chinese pair of Tan Qiang and Ren Xiang Yu, with an aim to clinch their first title of the 2023 season.
At the St Jakobshalle arena, the Indian pair made a great start in the opening game, leading Sin and Yi by 11-8. But the Malaysian turned the tides to their side with their gameplay, leading by 19-17. A late assault from Chirag and his partner helped India win the last four points to go 1-0 up in the tie.
The second game was a challenging one for India. Though it was competitive, the pair of Sin and Yi built a four-point lead to win the second game and set up an exciting decider.
The Malaysian pair dominated the final game initially. But once Chirag and Satwiksairaj built a 6-5 lead, there was no looking back for India. They built a seven-point advantage at 18-11. Though Malaysian cut the deficit further, it was not enough to stop the Indian pair from sealing the match in 69 minutes.
This was Chirag and Satwiksairaj's third win against Sin and Yi in six matches.
The Swiss Open started on March 21 and will go on till March 26.
