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satwiksairaj rankireddy chirag shetty: India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty continued their unbeaten campaign and made it to the knockout stage of the last BWF World Tour Finals of the season by defeating the Malaysian pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Wui Yik in their last match of Group B here on Friday.
New Delhi. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty continued their winning campaign and secured a place in the knockout stage of the BWF World Tour Finals. The Indian pair defeated their arch rivals Aaron Chia and Soh Wui Yik of Malaysia in their last match of Group B in Hangzhou on Friday. The third seeded pair of Satwik and Chirag, after losing the first game, showed composure and strategic wisdom to defeat the Paris Olympics bronze medalists 17-21, 21-18, 21-15 in a thrilling match that lasted 70 minutes. In this way, they are the first Indian men’s pair to reach the semi-finals of the last tournament of the season.
The only unbeaten pair of Satwik and Chirag in Group B needed just one win to secure a place in the semi-finals. They were 5-11 behind in winning record against Malaysian players. But by changing his strategy he defeated his opponents by putting them under pressure. India’s presence in the BWF finals held at the end of the year has been minimal. PV Sindhu is the only Indian who has won this title. She won the women’s singles title in 2018 while Saina Nehwal reached the final in 2011. In doubles, Jwala Gutta and V Diju reached the mixed doubles final of the 2009 Super Series Finals.
How was the competition?
The match was very exciting from the beginning. Both the teams were focusing on service and returns so that they could outwit each other. Initially the match was equal and the score reached 6-6. After this, the Malaysian pair went ahead 9-6, but the Indian pair made a strong comeback and reduced the score to 10-10. However, Malaysia had a slight lead of 11-10 at the break. After the break, some mistakes were made by the Indian players, taking advantage of which the Malaysian pair went ahead 18-12 and won the first game easily.
return to another game
There was a tough competition in the second game also. Both the teams were attacking fast while keeping the shuttle down. At one time Chirag Shetty was also shown a yellow card for delaying the game, but this did not break his morale. The Indians hit a series of powerful smashes and won the second game to take the match to the deciding (third) game. With this victory, he also confirmed his place in the knockout round.
The third game started with a bit of a wobble, but Satwik and Chirag soon took an 11-9 lead. After this he did not give Malaysian players a chance to comeback. The score was 17-13 and then thanks to Satwik’s brilliant return, India got five match points. In the end, India won the match due to the mistake of the Malaysian player.
India’s performance in this big tournament to be held at the end of the year has been excellent. PV Sindhu is the only Indian player who won this title in 2018. Saina Nehwal had reached the final in 2011. Jwala Gutta and V. Diju reached the finals of mixed doubles in 2009.
