Hangzhou Asian Games: Satwik-Chirag enter final, keep first-ever badminton gold medal hopes alive | Asian Games 2023 News

NEW DELHI: The men’s doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty delivered a stellar performance, advancing to the final and bringing India closer to securing its first-ever badminton gold at the Asian Games in Hangzhou on Friday.
Ranked at No. 3 in the world, this formidable pair, which had previously been part of the silver-medal-winning Indian men’s team last week, put on a remarkable display.
They outclassed Malaysia’s Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, who were Tokyo bronze medallists and former world champions, with a score of 21-17, 21-12, demonstrating their dominance over a 46-minute match.

Satwik and Chirag made history by becoming the first Indian men’s doubles pair to secure at least a silver medal at the Asian Games. They will now compete in the final on Saturday against Korea’s Choi Sol Gyu and Kim Won Ho.
While the two sent down their booming smashes whenever there was an opportunity, Satwik and Chirag were also good with their angles and placement.
The two pairs fought tooth and nail from the first point to 10-10 before Satwik produced a smash to take a one-point lead at the break.
On resumption, the Indian pair showed better anticipation and quickly extended their lead to 16-10 before grabbing six game points.

A service error from the Indians and then a deceptive stroke from Soh helped Malaysia save three game points before Aaron sent his forehand into the net.
The Indians came out all guns blazing with the pair mixing defence and attack seamlessly to zoom to 11-3 at the interval.
The two showed great coordination, moving smoothly back and forth with Satwik displaying his superb defence and Chirag complementing him.
Satwik and Chirag kept dominating the rallies with their anticipation and interceptions and grabbed 10 match points after winning a net duel, and converted in the third attempt.
(With PTI Inputs)