IMAGE: India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty defeated the Chinese pair of Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi to win the Thailand Open badminton men’s doubles crown in Bangkok on Sunday. Photograph: BAI Media/X
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty hardly broke a sweat while defeating the Chinese pair of Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi to win the Thailand Open Super 500 badminton tournament men’s doubles crown in Bangkok on Sunday.
The top seeded Indian pair needed just 45 minutes for a 21-15, 21-15 victory.
For the record, they did not drop a game right through the tournament.
“Bangkok has always been special for us; we won our first Super Series title back in 2019 here and also the Thomas Cup, so it has been a special place and so happy to be here,” declared Chirag after the triumph.
The scores ran neck-and-neck as the unseeded Chinese pair put up a strong fight in the first half of the opening game after the Indians opened up a 5-1 lead.
At 7-7, the Chinese pair won a 39-shot rally and surged ahead to 10-7 before spraying one long. Liu and Chen played a few intense rallies but Chirag unleashed a bullet return to draw level at 10-10 but Liu ensured they had a slender edge at the break.
The Asian Games gold medallists raced away with a 21-15 win in the first game moved to 14-11 after resumption before Satwik sliced one to net.
The Indians extended the lead to 16-12. Liu sent a lob over Satwik’s head to set up a point, while Chirag sprayed into net as the Chinese kept snapping at their heels.
However, the Indians soon grabbed five game points with Satwik sending one to the corner and then dishing out another superb service which the Chinese could only bury into the net.
The Indians made a solid 8-3 start after the change of sides and maintained the five-point cushion at the interval when the Chinese dumped one into the net.
Chen and Liu registered three straight points but Satwik broke the run of play with an aggressive return. At 15-11, Satwik received warning for delaying the game and with Chirag overhitting twice, Chen and Liu moved to 14-15.
But the Indians dashed any hopes of a mutiny with Chirag setting up a point with a fine placement and Satwik providing the finishing touch as they moved to 17-15. Liu then sprayed into net as the Indians again eked out a three-point gap.
Satwik then unleashed a barrage of smashes to grab five match points. The Chinese then sent Chirag’s smash into the net. As part of celebrations, Satwik broke into a dance with his racquet, while Chirag threw his shirt into the crowd.
Satwik and Chirag have a deep relation with Thailand as it was at the same venue five years back, in 2019, that they won their maiden Super 500 crown.
The pair had some low returns in the last couple of tournaments. The lost in the second round at the All England Championships and missed the Asia Championships due to an injury to Satwik.
The Thomas Cup campaign was also not too fruitful as they lost a couple of narrow matches to top pairs.
Sunday’s triumph provides a major boost ahead of the Paris Olympics.
