Shenzen: The Indian men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty put on an impressive performance to defeat Denmark’s second-seeded Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, advancing to the semifinals of the China Masters Super 750 badminton tournament on Friday.
Lakshya Sen, India’s sole representative in the singles category, was eliminated from the tournament after a defeat of 18-21, 15-21 to Denmark’s Anders Antonsen.
Competing in their first event post the Paris Olympics, Satwik and Chirag, who were finalists in the previous edition, secured a 21-16, 21-19 victory over the world’s number two duo in 47 minutes.
The Asian Games champions are set to compete against either Japan’s eighth-seeded Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi or Korea’s Jin Yong and Seo Seung Jae in the semifinal round.
In the initial game, the Indian pair showed excellent form, leading 11-8 at the interval, which they expanded to 16-10 with a series of rapid, angled returns that controlled the rallies.
Satwik and Chirag maintained a strong hold on the game, earning six game points. Despite a powerful smash from Rasmussen and a net error by Chirag delaying their win, the Danes eventually conceded the first game to the Indians.
The second game saw heightened competition, with the Danish pair leading the flat exchanges and moving ahead to 7-5 after the initial exchanges. Despite a service fault call against Satwik at 8-8, the Indian duo managed to take an 11-10 lead at the break.
After a closely-fought contest, Satwik and Chirag edged ahead to 16-15, only for their opponents to briefly lead at 17-16.
Nonetheless, a net error by Astrup handed the Indians a 19-18 advantage. Chirag’s precise push to the backline brought them to match point, and Satwik clinched the victory with a decisive smash.
