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Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty beat Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang to reach BWF World Championships quarterfinals in a thrilling match.
Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy have qualified for the World Championships quarters (Picture credit: AFP)
Star Indian men’s doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty on Thursday beat the Chinese pair of Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in a three-game thriller to book their spot in the quarterfinals of the BWF World Championships, holding their nerves in crucial stages of the classic encounter.
It was Satwik and Chirag’s first win against Liang and Wang after four consecutive defeats.
Satwik and Chirag were down 15-17 in the decider but stormed back with six straight points to clinch the victory over Liang and Wang, marking just their third win against the Chinese duo in nine meetings.
Satwik and Chirag will take on Malaysia’s World No. 2 duo, Aaron Chia and Woo Yik Soh, in the quarterfinals.
The Malaysians lead the head-to-head battle against the Indians 11-2 and Satwik and Chirag are expected to have a tough time getting the better of their opponents.
In their last meeting at the China Open last month, the Malaysians won in straight games. Notably, it was also in Paris, in the quarterfinals of the Olympics, that Chia and Soh had ended the Indians’ aspirations for an Olympic medal, and Satwik and Chirag will look to avenge that heartbreak.
(More to follow)
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