Indian pair Satwiksairaj-Chirag finish runner-up at China Masters 2025

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty lost 19-21, 15-21 to World Champions Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae in the men’s doubles final of the China Masters 2025, marking back-to-back runner-up finishes for the Indian pair

Shenzhen: Top Indian men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty suffered a straight-game loss to recently crowned World Champions Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae of South Korea in the final of the China Masters 2025, a BWF World Series Super 750 tournament, on Sunday.

The Indian duo, unbeaten in games on their way to the final, lost 19-21, 15-21 to Kim and Seo at Shenzhen Arena, claiming back-to-back runner-up finishes on the BWF World Tour.

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This was Satwik and Chirag’s second final of 2025. They had earlier reached the final of the Hong Kong Super 500 last week, breaking a streak of six semifinal defeats, where they lost the title clash against China’s Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang in three games.

The Koreans took an early lead, but Chirag levelled it at 3-3 with a third shot at the net. Smashes from the Indians prevented the Koreans from extending their lead beyond one point up to 5-6. Satwik and Chirag then snatched the lead and went into the break with an 11-7 advantage.

Satwik and Chirag appeared in control at 14-7, but the Koreans fought back to 14-13 and eventually levelled the scores at 17-all. Mistakes from both Indians helped the Koreans take the opener 21-19.

The second game was equally contested, with both teams level at 9-all. The Koreans held a narrow lead, reaching the mid-game interval at 11-10. After the break, they extended the lead to 14-11, before Satwik and Chirag reduced it to 14-16. However, the Koreans quickly earned five match points and wrapped up the match to claim the title.