Star Indian doubles badminton pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won their first doubles titles of 2023 when they emerged victorious at the finals of the Swiss Open Super 300 in Basel on Sunday. The Indian duo were seeded second and were clinical in their summit clash winning the first game 21-19.
While their opponents China’s Ren Xiang Yu and Tan Qiang did their best to force the game into a decider, the Indian pair ultimately won the second set 24-22 to wrap up the match in 54 minutes. This will be a massive morale lifter for the Indian contingent in general but specifically for the two shuttlers who had bowed out of the All England Open Championships after a second round defeat.
The way they absorbed the pressure of a final and performed was exceptional, especially considering that this was their first final of the the year after having lost a semifinal earlier in January.
The World number six-ranked pair had taken an 11-8 lead when the mid-game interval was called after which even though their opponents tried hard, the Indians had gone far ahead in the game and ultimately took the game 21-19, leading 17-12 at one stage.
The second game, which turned out to be the decisive one, was a much more evenly contested game and the score was levelled 8-8 at one point in this game before the Chinese duo managed to make it 11-11 and then saved three match points but the Indians used their vast experience against an unseeded pair and went on to ensure a win.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty have won three more titles on the BWF World Tour before this with them having won the India Open and French Open last year to go with the Thailand Open in 2019. They were the only ones in medal contention in this event, with others eliminated in earlier rounds itself.