Satwik-Chirag Exit BWF World Championships in Quarter-Finals

India’s hopes of securing another medal at the BWF World Championships suffered a blow as Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty crashed out in the quarter-finals after losing to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in straight games. The Indian pair went down 18-21, 9-21 in a one-sided contest after failing to build on a promising start in the opening game. Despite taking a 14-12 lead at one stage, Satwik and Chirag could not hold on to their advantage as the Chinese duo produced a strong finish to take the first game 21-18.

Liang and Wang carried the momentum into the second game and quickly put the Indian pair under pressure. Satwik and Chirag trailed 5-9 before falling further behind at 8-15, with the Chinese pair firmly in control. The Indian duo struggled to find a way back as Liang and Wang continued to dictate the rallies. The Chinese pair eventually closed out the second game 21-9 to seal their place in the semi-finals and end Satwik and Chirag’s campaign. The defeat also ended India’s hopes of adding a second medal through the men’s doubles event. Satwik and Chirag had entered the quarter-finals with a tough head-to-head record against Liang and Wang, having won only four of their previous 13 meetings.

Earlier in the day, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand had created history by storming into the women’s doubles semi-finals. The Indian pair stunned world No. 4 Jia Yi Fan and Zhang Shu Xian 16-21, 21-15, 21-13 to secure India’s first medal at the ongoing World Championships.

Treesa and Gayatri became only the second Indian women’s doubles pair to win a World Championships medal after Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa, who claimed bronze in 2011. With Satwik and Chirag now eliminated, Treesa and Gayatri remain India’s only medal hope at the championships. The young duo will next face top seeds Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning of China in the semi-finals.