Satwik-Chirag pair reaches Swiss Open final

Commonwealth Games champions and World Championships bronze medallists Satwik and Chirag won the semifinal contest against third-seeded Malaysians Ong and Teo 21-19, 17-21, 21-17 in an hour and nine minutes.

FILE PHOTO: India’s Chirag Shetty (front) and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (back) reached the men’s doubles final at the 2023 Swiss Open on Saturday.

India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty beat Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi to reach the men’s doubles final at Swiss Open, a BWF World Tour Super 300 event, in Basel on Saturday.

Commonwealth Games champions and World Championships bronze medallists Satwik and Chirag won the semifinal contest against third-seeded Ong and Teo 21-19, 17-21, 21-17 in an hour and nine minutes.

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The second-seeded Indian pair will take on China’s Ren Xiang Yu and Tan Qiang in the summit clash on Sunday.

The Malaysians had a 3-2 head-to-head advantage over Satwik and Chirag but the early stages of the match were dominated by the Indian pair. The duo led 11-8 at the mid-game interval before extending it to 16-11. However, Ong and Teo won six consecutive points in a row to turn things around. At 19-17, the Malaysian pair was just two points away from sealing the opening game but this time, the Indian pair went on a streak of four straight points to steal it 21-19.

Ong and Teo led the second game right from the beginning and never let the advantage go, closing it eventually at 21-17.

Both pairs were neck-to-neck in the initial stages of the decider before the Indians won five straight points from six-all to lead at the mid-game interval. Satwik and Chirag further strengthened their position, extending their lead to 15-8. Trailing 11-18, the Malaysians tried their best to make a comeback but the Indians held their nerve to close the decider 21-17 and seal a spot in the final.