Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, left, and Chirag Shetty. File
| Photo Credit: AP
Star Indian pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty stormed into their second successive men’s doubles final with a clinical straight-game win over former world champions Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik of Malaysia at the China Masters Super 750 badminton tournament on Saturday (September 21, 2025).
Fresh from a World Championships bronze and a runner-up finish at the Hong Kong Open last week, the Asian Games champions outclassed their long-time nemesis Aaron and Soh 21-17 21-14 in a dominating performance.
In the final on Sunday (September 22), Satwik and Chirag will face the top seed and world champion Korean pair of Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae, who beat Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri of Indonesia 21-13 2-17 in the semifinals.
Satwik and Chirag came into the match with a 4-11 head-to-head record against the Malaysian duo, who are two-time Olympic medallists. However, the Indians had recently got the better of Aaron and Soh en route to their bronze medal at the World Championships in Paris.
On Saturday, the Indians came out with an all-out attacking approach, backed by a solid defence, while also dominating the front court as the Malaysians — particularly Aaron — looked out of sorts during the 41-minute semifinal clash.
“(It) feels great, last week we were talking that we had played a lot of semi-finals this year, weren’t able to play a final but finally we got to play a final last week, although we couldn’t go on to win,” said Chirag after Saturday’s win.
“But yeah, really happy that we could play a final last week as well and same this week. I think we want to do better than we did last week this time around.
“Will take rest first obviously, and then prepare for the final tomorrow. So yeah looking forward to tomorrow,” he added.
The opening game was a tight affair with both pairs fighting tooth and nail. Aaron and Soh grabbed a 10-7 lead with four straight points. But three errors from Aaron — including a service fault — allowed Satwik and Chirag to claw back. The Malaysians still held a slender one-point advantage at the interval.
At 14-13, Aaron faltered again at the net, handing the initiative back to the Indians. A flurry of smashes from Satwik and errors from their rivals took the Indians to 18-14. A sharp return from Satwik gave them four game points and they sealed the opener on the second opportunity.
In the second game, Satwik and Chirag raced to a 5-2 lead after the change of ends, with Satwik’s smashes and Chirag’s deft front-court play helping them stretch it to 8-2. Though the Malaysians narrowed the gap to 6-8, the Indians went into the interval with an 11-6 cushion.
Aaron and Soh reduced it to 9-11, but the Indians responded with another surge to make it 15-9. At 16-12, Satwik produced a thunderous smash followed by a lucky net cord, and the Malaysians’ errors mounted.
Chirag applied the finishing touches with a deep return and a decisive smash to close out the contest.
Asked about their impressive counter-attacking play, Satwik said, “It’s all about confidence. We have been practising that for many years. After the World Championship, we got a lot of confidence because we were finally on the podium.
“So at the World Championship, we got that feeling. We want that feeling again and again, and in Hong Kong, we got the taste again and here also. I think it’s all about confidence and playing calm and playing your game and making it clear. On the podium, but you just know you are missing one step.”
On their fitness and how they are holding up, Satwik said, “In the first half (of the year), we got a lot of breaks because of injuries. Right now we both are in good condition, finger crossed. Hopefully we’ll continue this form.”
Published – September 21, 2025 04:40 am IST
