By Swastika Sahu
India’s top men’s doubles team, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, have secured their place in quarterfinals of the Hong Kong Open. They earned their spot with a hard-fought victory against Thailand’s Peeratchai Sukphun and Pakkapon Teeraratsakul.
Ranked no. 42, this Thai duo surprised the Indians by winning the first game 21-18 with sharp net play and strong defence. However, the reigning Asian Games gold medallists quickly regrouped. They came back with a tighter attack to control the second game.
After the close battle in the third game, with the score tied at 7-7, the Indian pair pulled ahead to an 11-10 lead by the mid-game break and never looked back. They dominated the final game, racing to a 7-2 lead as the Thai team faltered.
Next up, they will face Yap Roy King & Junaidi Arif of Malaysia in the quarterfinals on Friday, September 12.The Malaysian duo secured their spot in the last eight by defeating their compatriots, Muhammad Haikal and Choong Hon Jian, in the previous round.
Meanwhile, over in the men’s singles bracket, several Indian players are competing in today’s round of 16. In an interesting turn of events, HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen will go head-to-head once again, a rematch of their encounter at last year’s Paris Olympics.