Thailand Open: Satwik-Chirag clinch men’s doubles title

Asian Games gold medallists Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy triumphed in the men’s doubles title at the Thailand Open Super 500 badminton tournament on Sunday.

With the Paris Olympics on the horizon, the Indian shuttler duo of Chirag and Satwiksairaj received a significant boost in their quest for a medal. They defeated China’s Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi in straight sets to add another title to their impressive trophy cabinet.

The world number three pair edged past Chen and Yi with a 21-15, 21-15 victory, clinching their ninth BWF World Tour title. This victory marks their second title of the year, following their French Open win in March.

The top-seeded Indian pair started strong, racing to an early 5-1 lead, but Chen and Yi fought back to level the score at 7-7. After a series of intense rallies, Satwik and Chirag found themselves trailing 10-7.

However, the Indian duo turned the game around with remarkable play, with Chirag executing a sensational stroke to level the score at 10-10. They then elevated their game, taking a 14-11 lead and eventually sealing the first set 21-15.

In the second set, Chirag and Satwik started dominantly, quickly moving to an 8-3 lead. Despite a brief comeback from Chen and Yi, the Indian pair maintained their lead, making the score 15-11. A few errors allowed their opponents to narrow the gap to a single point, but Chirag and Satwik bounced back, with Satwik delivering powerful smashes to close the game with another 21-15 win.

“Thailand Open has been a special tournament for us as we won our first Super 500 crown here and have won many more tournaments thereafter. We are hoping that this victory will start another winning run for us,” said Satwik after clinching the title, as quoted by the Badminton Association of India (BAI).

Reflecting on their performance in the final, Satwik noted, “We knew that we cannot relax even for a single point against our opponents as they fight till the end. But we played our best game of the tournament today and controlled the situation very well.”