The spirited campaign of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty wasn’t good enough to get over the line, as they went down against world number one South Korean pair Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae at the China Masters S750 final, losing the match 19-21, 15-21. Kim and Seo are also the newly-crowned world champions.
At the start of the opening game, Chirag made a few mistakes which gave Kim-Seo a 3-0 lead but moments after, Satwik-Chirag levelled the scoreline with powerful smashes. A few points were exchanged after that till 7-7. Then the game saw the Indians winning 7 straight points with delightful returns and impressive attacks. But the Koreans narrowed the lead with flick serves and flat exchanges close to the net, taking the lead soon. They held on to win the game.
The initial phase of the second game saw a neck-and-neck battle as both pairs exchanged points until the interval, when the Koreans were ahead 11-10. After the break, Kim and Seo accelerated with four consecutive points to reach 15-11. The game continued in the same fashion and the match ended with a backhand return from Satwik that landed out of court.
This marked the second straight final loss for the Indian duo in 10 days. The Koreans showed a better display of their skills in the second game and Satwik-Chirag struggled against their serves, deception, smashes and especially gameplay around the net. The Indians played well in patches but it was not enough to clinch the title.
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