Badminton at Tokyo Olympics 2020: Satwik-Chirag stun World No. 3 Lee Yang, Wang Chi-Lin to kick off campaign

Badminton at Tokyo Olympics 2020: Satwik-Chirag stun World No. 3 Lee Yang, Wang Chi-Lin to kick off campaign

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty

The Indian duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty kick off their Tokyo Olympics campaign with a stunning win. Satwik-Chirag stunned the third-seeded duo of Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lin in their opening encounter. The Indian duo defeated Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lin 21-16, 16-21, 27-25 in the Group A game at the Musashino Forest Plaza Court 3.

Satwik and Chirag took the first game 21-16 as the young duo brought their A-game to the court. The Chinese Taipei duo had no clue as to what was being thrown at them, but they did stage a comeback in the second game. Winning it 21-16 they send the match into the third and deciding game where the duo of Satwik and Chirag prevailed.

Satwik-Chirag prove their mettle on Olympic debut

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (Satwik-Chirag)
Satwiksairaj and Chirag

The pair of Satwik and Chirag made a huge statement on their Olympic debut, pulling off the very first upset of the event. The Chinese Taipei pair have had a solid 2021 season. They were the clear favorites heading into this match but Satwik and Chirag proved their mettle to win the encounter by taking home a thrilling final game.

FS Video

Earlier, India shuttler Sai Praneeth lost his group stage match against Israel’s Misha Zilberman. Zilberman defeated the Indian 21-17, 21-15 in the Group D match. While the Indians pulled an unexpected upset in the doubles game, they were shocked in another in the singles event, which was clearly not expected from Praneeth.

Also Read | Badminton at Olympics: Sai Praneeth struggle, loses opening match to lower-ranked Israeli shuttler