Last Update: November 03, 2022, 00:41 IST
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty (IANS)
Satwik-Chirag, who won the French Open last week, made a comeback from the first game to beat the Chinese Taipei pair of Yang Li and Chen Lu 19-21, 21-19, 21-16 in 61 minutes.
India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty entered the men’s doubles pre-quarters at the Hylo Open 2022 BWF Super 300 tournament after beating Chinese Taipei’s Yang Li and Chen Lu in the round of 32 on Wednesday.
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The Satwik-Chirag pair, who won the French Open last week, came back from a loss in the first game to beat the Chinese Taipei pair 19-21, 21-19, 21-16 in 61 minutes.
Li, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, was paired with Chen Lu instead of his usual partner Chi-Lin Wang.
After a close start in their first game, the Chinese Taipei pair managed to score seven consecutive points and put Satwik-Chirag on the back foot. The Indian pair made a comeback, but Yang Li and Chen Lu won the opening game.
Points were exchanged in quick succession between the two pairs in a competitive second game. But Satwik and Chirag held their nerves to force the decider at the last minute.
The Indian badminton pair advanced into the final game and made a comeback to enter the Round of 16, where they would face England’s Rory Easton and Zach Russ.