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Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty. File | Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
In a gruelling contest that lasted for an hour and 7 minutes, Satwik and Chirag’s valiant battle led to a 19-21, 21-18, 12-21 defeat towards Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi. The first two video games remained a carefully knitted affair, however the Chinese pair ran rampant, dominating the Indian duo within the decider.
Satwik and Chirag stepped on courtroom primary, gained the toss and opted to obtain first with the previous on the firing line. With a exact return of serve from Satwik, the Chinese pair managed to hit the shuttle vast as the primary level went straight to the Indian pair.
With back-to-back smashes from the Chinese pair that straightaway crashed into the online, Satwik and Chirag opened up a 4-0 lead. Chen and Liu bounced again shortly to open their account and minimize down the deficit to 4-1.
Within the blink of a watch, Satwik and Chirag raced to a 9-3 lead, however Chen and Liu pounced on the attacking window to cut back the India duo’s lead by 9-5. Satwik and Chirag flawlessly minimize down the Chinese pair’s streak and responded with an 11-5 lead on the midway break of the opening recreation.
After the interval, Chen and Liu seemingly dismissed what had occurred up to now and upped the ante to script an unblemished comeback. With a watertight defence and a number of pictures, they chewed up Satwik and Chirag’s lead and drew degree at 12-12.
With a rapturous drop shot earlier than exploiting the house to the forehand facet, Chen and Liu took the lead for the primary time within the opening recreation at 13-14. Realising the gravity of the scenario, Satwik’s ferocious smash, which Chen was unable to return, restored parity at 14-14.
The Indian pair ultimately fell at a 14-16 drawback after Chirag misjudged his defensive block and despatched the shuttle straight into the online. With a 24-shot rally, Satwik and Chirag stayed within the recreation by bringing down the scoreline to 16-18. Despite their resistance act, the Chinese pair hammered the ultimate blow to take a lead with a 19-21 win.
In the second recreation, the Indian pair, but once more, raced to a 6-2 benefit earlier than Chen and Liu chopped it down and ultimately levelled at 8-8. With deja vu creeping into Satwik and Chirag’s minds, they fortified their defence and seized on each attacking alternative to take a 15-11 benefit.
Their second of reprieve didn’t final lengthy, as Chen and Liu got here at them with the intention of pulling off one other rescue act. With their strong defence, the Chinese pair cranked up 5 consecutive factors to degree 17-17. A shot gone far too lengthy and a web dribble handed a two-point benefit to Satwik and Chirag, who transformed the opening right into a 21-18 win. As Chirag noticed the shuttle land away from the specified spot, he celebrated the win with a fist bump.
In the third and deciding recreation, the Indian duo bought off to a shaky begin, swiftly trailing 0-3. As the sport progressed, the Chinese pair elevated the depth, which was mirrored of their type of play. Chen executed a stellar leaping back-hand catching Chirag off-guard, and Liu attacked the nets because the Indian pair fell behind 0-6.
Satwik and Chirag misplaced 9 straight factors within the decider earlier than taking their first after a 34-shot rally. The flick serve continued so as to add to India’s agony as Satwik and Chirag continued with their catch-up play at 2-10. In 10 minutes, the Chinese orchestrated a 3-11 result in take a step nearer to the ultimate.
Chen and Liu continued to march on in the direction of victory with out breaking a sweat, leaving an enormous hill to climb for the Indians within the course of. At 5-17, the destiny of the sport seemed destined as Satwik and Chirag rued their errors and misjudgements. The Indian nonetheless fought again, pulling a few factors, however couldn’t keep away from the destiny and surrendered to a 12-21 defeat.
Published – August 31, 2025 04:24 am IST
