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Shades of Chong Wei v Lin Dan as Shetty-Rankireddy fight back to make final | Scoop
Chirag Shetty (left) and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy have stormed into the Malaysia Open final after a stunning comeback in their semi-final at the Axiata Arena. – Pic courtesy of BAM, January 13, 2024
Sports

Shades of Chong Wei v Lin Dan as Shetty-Rankireddy fight back to make final

Indian pair smash eight straight points to force rubber against S. Koreans in semis win at Malaysia Open

Main Author Image
Faizal Salim
Updated
10:42 PM MYT

 

KUALA LUMPUR – India’s men’s doubles pair Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy staged a stunning comeback in the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open today.

Facing the threat of reigning world champions Kang Min-hyuk and Seo Seung-jae, who knocked out Malaysia’s Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik yesterday, the Indian pair smashed the South Koreans out of the tournament in straight sets 21-19, 22-20 at the Axiata Arena.

Despite the Indians winning the first set comfortably, the match appeared headed for a rubber game when the South Koreans looked to have the second set wrapped with a 20-14 lead.

However, known for never giving up, Shetty and Rankireddy battled back and won eight consecutive points to take the match away from the Koreans.  

This match showed a glimpse of Datuk Lee Chong Wei’s stunning comeback in the 2006 Malaysia Open final against Lin Dan.

Then, Chong Wei was trailing 20-13 in the rubber set and eventually triumphed 23-21 to take the title – one of his 12 home open titles.

Meanwhile, Rankireddy applauded his partner Shetty’s ability to serve under pressure.

“Kudos to Shetty, the way he served made it easy for me to play one stroke and see what happens. To serve with those nerves… it needs strong guts… when I was in that situation I served to the net in previous tournaments.

“Kudos to him for the way he served and kept our opponents under pressure and made my job easier. I’m really happy with the way we played today,” he said.

Shetty said he did not think too far ahead while trying to mount the comeback.

“From 20-14 we knew it would be an uphill task. We didn’t really think of anything but focusing on one point at a time. If you lose focus, you will start making mistakes.

“So the important thing is to focus on winning the points and I think that is what we did right from 20-14 to 22-20. We didn’t think about being down or leading,” said the 23-year-old.

The Indian pair will meet world number ones Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang in the final tomorrow. – January 13, 2024

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