Last Update: April 30, 2023, 22:54 IST
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won the men’s doubles title at the Badminton Asia Championship (Twitter/BAI)
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty create history by winning gold medals in Badminton Asia Championship
India’s top-ranked men’s doubles players Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy looked upbeat after winning the men’s doubles title at the Badminton Asia Championships, with Shetty saying he was very happy after winning the title.
The Indian men’s doubles pair created history on Sunday as they defeated Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yee in the final of the Badminton Asia Championships 2023 to win the gold medal.
Shetty and Rankireddy beat the Malaysian pair 16-21, 21-17, 21-19 in a thrilling men’s doubles final that lasted one hour and seven minutes.
Badminton Association of India (BAI) President Himanta Biswa Sarma announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for the historic victory of the Indian pair.
After the match, Shetty said, “I am very happy after winning the Badminton Asia Championships title. Me and Satwik worked really hard for this medal and I am happy that finally we won the title. Also, I Want to thank everyone back home for supporting me.
“I am grateful for the support we received during the Badminton Asia Championships. It is a great feeling to win this tournament for the first time and I am sure we will win more such titles in the future. We will continue to work hard to bring laurels to the country,” Rankireddy concluded.
This is the first gold medal for India in the Badminton Asia Championships in men’s doubles category. Dipu Ghosh and Raman Ghosh won bronze medals in 1971 when they reached the semi-finals of the competition. Dinesh Khanna is the only gold medalist for India in the men’s singles category at the continental championships. He won the men’s singles title in 1965.
Talking about the final, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy said that they rode on the crowd support to win against the Malaysian pair.
“I think today we didn’t play, the crowd played with us. It was a bad start in the first and half of the second game, but we didn’t give up. We kept our nerves; we know how to play in these conditions. So, we were waiting for a good rhythm and then take our chances. We were calm in the second and third games. It felt like playing in Hyderabad. The crowd was amazing.”
Chirag Shetty said that the turning point of the match was 13-8 in the second game.
“After 13-8, we tried to play a little smarter. Service was something that worked really well for us; This surprised him. We were very calm defending as well.”
On how it felt to create history and become the Asian champions, Rankireddy said, “Personally for me it will take a long time to believe that we are the Asian champions. I still can’t believe we are Thomas Cup champions. It is our dream to win and hoist the tricolor for India. Good boost for us as we go into the Olympic qualification period.”
This is easily the biggest title for Shetty and Rankireddy after the World Championship bronze.
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