India’s top men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy stormed into the final of the Indonesia Open 2023 badminton tournament on Saturday.
Playing at the Istora Senayan sports arena, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, sixth in men’s doubles badminton rankings, defeated world No. 12 pair of Kang Minhyuk and Seo Seungjae of the Republic of Korea 17-21, 21-19, 21-18 in one hour and seven minutes.
Kang Minhyuk and Seo Seungjae dominated the initial phase of the semi-final and never allowed the reigning Commonwealth Games champions to take control in the first game.
Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, however, mounted a comeback after a change of ends and took the match into the decider.
With momentum in their sails, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, who won bronze at the world championships last year, went into the final break with a handy six-point lead.
Kang Minhyuk and Seo Seungjae made it all square at 16-16 but the Indian duo progressed to their first-ever BWF Super 1000 final by winning five of the last seven points.
It was the third win for the Indian pair over their South Korean opponents in four matches.
Earlier in the quarter-finals, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy stunned the world No. 1 pair of Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto in straight games.
In the Indonesia Open 2023 men’s doubles final on Sunday, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy will take on the reigning world champions Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik. The Indian duo have faced the Malaysian heavyweights seven times and ended on the losing side on all seven occasions.
In the men’s singles semi-finals, HS Prannoy’s two-match winning streak over Tokyo Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen ended after he suffered a 21-15, 21-15 defeat in 46 minutes.
Earlier in the quarter-finals, HS Prannoy, world No. 9, defeated Japan’s world No. 4 Kodai Naraoka in straight games. India’s challenge in the women’s singles event ended with the defeat of PV Sindhu in the first round.
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