Toyota Thailand Open: India out of men’s doubles title contention with semi-final loss

Toyota Thailand Open: India out of men’s doubles title contention with semi-final loss

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty

The semi-finals of the ongoing Toyota Thailand Open were being looked forward to with bated breath especially after the thrilling quarter-finals. First up were the men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.

The 2019 Thailand Open winners beat Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi in the quarter-finals in a straight game victory. The defending champions faced Malaysian pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in the semi-finals. Winning in this round would have secured their berth in the finals keeping alive the hope to repeat history. But alas, their eighth seeded opponents got the better of the Indian duo today.

The semi-finals began with neither team taking a considerable lead over the other. Going into the mid-game break in the first bout, the Malaysians only enjoyed a slight advantage of one point. Both the pairs were neck-to-neck.However, the pace of the match quickened drastically. Although the Indians picked up some impressive points with their powerful down-the-line smashes, the Malaysians took the first game with their overall consistency.

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Rankireddy and Shetty exit the contest

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty

In the second bout, the Indian duo showed a lot of adventure on court but their opponents held lines well. Aaron and Soh frustrated Rankireddy and Shetty with their dominant play. Soon, the Indians were forced to make errors by the Malaysian duo.

The Malaysian pair only turned up the heat after the mid-game break and raced ahead with a massive lead. With their backs against the wall, the Indian duo tried to mount a spirited comeback. They saved four match points making it uncomfortable for the opposition. In an exciting final rally, Chirag found the net while trying to lift a smash. This handed the Malaysians a ticket to the finals with a straight game victory. The final scores were, 18-21, 18-21.

“We are happy to play in the semifinals, but we didn’t play our best today. We couldn’t score points on our service but we were receiving well. I think if we’d been able to take a few points and converted the first game, the scenario would have been a lot different,” Chirag Shetty said.

“We didn’t control the shuttle. We tried to pick things up in the second game. They [Chia/Woh Wooi Yik] are more experienced players. They made the All England finals in 2019. We fought for each point and maybe we could have been calmer. We’re disappointed but happy to play in the semifinals,” Satwiksairaj Rankireddy said.

All eyes will now be on the sole remaining Indian challengers, the mixed doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy.

Also Read: Toyota Thailand Open: Women’s singles semi-final preview