Korea Open 2023: Satwik-Chirag defeats Chinese pair, make it to the final
At the ongoing 2023 Korea Open, the Satwik-Chirag pair made it to the final of men's doubles.
In the semifinal of the tournament, they defeated the Chinese duo of Liang/Wang in straight games at the Jinnam stadium.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty beat China's Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, 21-15, 24-22 to enter into the final. They took 40 minutes to win the semifinal. The sensational Indian pair dominated the opening game and maintained a comfortable lead until they scored the winning point.
However, the second game was a nail-biting one and the contest looked very close right from the beginning. Despite that, the energetic Indian duo took points at crucial and final moments to win the second game as well.
In the final of the Korea Open, the men's doubles pair of India will compete for the title against Indonesia's Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto on July 23.
Satwik-Chirag in outstanding form this year
Currently ranked number 3 in the world, the talented pair have performed exceedingly well this year. In the Swiss Open 2023 final, they beat Ren Xiang Yu and Tan Qiang of China in straight games.
The stunning Indian duo claimed the gold medal at the 2023 Badminton Asia Championships, as they outplayed the Malaysian pair in the final. Thereafter, at the 2023 Indonesia Open tournament, Satwik-Chirag defeated Malaysia's Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik to clinch the Super 1000 title.
With their impressive performance, they have raised the expectations of a medal at the upcoming Asian Games 2023.
Other major achievements of Satwik-Chirag
The young pair has won a number of accolades so far in their career, importantly clinching the gold medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games last year. In the final of men's doubles, Satwik and Chirag gave a crushing defeat to England's Sean Vendy and Ben Lane.
Later, they also went on to grab the bronze medal at the 2022 BWF World Championships.