India H.S. Prannoy beat Malaysia Lee Zii Jia 21-16, 21-23, 23-21 before Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty thrashed the Singaporean pair of Joo Jie Nge and Prajogoto Johann 21-7, 21-9 to confirm a spot in the badminton semifinals at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou on Thursday.
The highest-ranked men’s singles player, Prannoy, started strong by winning set 1 comfortably 21-16.
The Indian was on course to finish things off in the second game, but Zii Jia fought back to force the match into the third and final game by winning the second one 21-23.
Prannoy kept his calm in the final game and won a three-set thriller to confirm a medal for himself.
Prannoy’s medal will be India’s only second-ever medal in men’s singles at the Asian Games, after Syed Modi’s bronze in 198
Earlier, the men’s team lost to China in the final and had to settle for a silver where Prannoy did not participate due to a back injury.
Meanwhile, Satwik-Chirag’s ferocius backhand drops proved to be a bit too much for Joo Jie and Johann.
The Indian pair, ranked third in the world, seemed to be in a hurry to travel back to the team hotel after confirming at least a bronze for themselves.
They become second Indian men’s double pair, after Leroy D’sa & Pradeep Gandhne in 1982, to secure Asian Games medal after 41 years.
They will next face the World No. 5 Malaysian pairing of Chia Aaron and Wooi Yik Soh.
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