hangzhou19 December. The renowned Indian pair of former world number one Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty created history at the BWF World Tour Finals here on Friday as they continued their unbeaten run in the league round by defeating the current world number two team of Malaysian Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik and secured a place in the semi-finals for the first time with their third consecutive win in Group B.
After losing the first game, defeated the second seed Malaysian team.
Coming to play the final match of the day on Court 2 of Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium, third seeds Satwik and Chirag made a brilliant comeback after losing the first game, showing composure and strategic wisdom and defeated the Paris Olympics bronze medalists 17-21, 21-18, 21-15 in a thrilling battle that lasted 70 minutes.
First Indian men’s pair to reach the semi-finals of the last tournament of the season
With this, Satwik and Chirag achieved the distinction of being the first Indian men’s pair to reach the semi-finals of the last tournament of the season. If seen, India’s presence in the year-end BWF finals has been minimal. PV Sindhu is the only Indian to have won this title. She won the women’s singles title in 2018 while Saina Nehwal reached the final in 2011. In doubles, Jwala Gutta and V Diju reached the mixed doubles final of the 2009 Super Series Finals.
Great comeback after losing the first game
If seen, the only unbeaten pair of Satwik and Chirag in Group B needed only one win to secure a place in the semi-finals. They were 5–11 in winning record against Malaysian players. But after losing the first game, they changed their strategy and defeated their opponents by putting them under pressure. With this, the Indian pair avenged the defeat suffered by the Malaysian pair in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and completed a memorable moment on one of the biggest stages of badminton.
Satwik-Chirag again in the semi-finals in front of Liang Wei and Wang Chang
Satwik and Chirag, who are striving for the first BWF World Tour Finals title of their career, will face the Olympic silver medalist Chinese pair of Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in the semi-finals on Saturday. The Indian team has also won the group stage against world number five Chinese giants after losing the first game.
Final men’s doubles standings at #Hangzhou2025,
Results
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The top two teams of Group A will face each other in the second semi-final. In the group, world champions and top seeded Koreans Kim Wan Ho and Seo Seung Jae, who won all three matches, will face Indonesian Sabar Karayama Gutama and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Isfani.
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