Satwik and Chirag enter Thailand Open semifinals, Sindhu exits

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the semifinals of the Thailand Open badminton championship with a straight-game win over Japan’s Takumi Nomura and Yuichi Shimogami. PV Sindhu, however, bowed out after losing to top seed Akane Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals

Hyderabad: Top seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty moved into the semifinals of the Thailand Open badminton championship, defeating the sixth-seeded Japanese pair of Takumi Nomura and Yuichi Shimogami 21-12, 21-13 in the quarterfinals in Pattaya on Friday.

However, former world champion PV Sindhu bowed out after losing 21-19, 18-21, 15-21 to top seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan.

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Double Olympic medallist Sindhu entered the quarterfinal clash against Yamaguchi with a 15-11 head-to-head advantage.

In the first game, neither shuttler had a lead of more than two points. The Indian, seeded sixth, stayed within striking distance and, from 19-19, grabbed the opener by winning two points in a row.

The 30-year-old Sindhu had the upper hand during the first half of the second game as she entered the mid-game interval with a four-point lead. However, a string of errors from the Indian allowed World No. 3 Yamaguchi to win seven points in a row.

Sindhu never recovered from the shift in momentum as Yamaguchi levelled the match before leading all the way through the decider of the 61-minute battle.

In the first-ever meeting between the two doubles combinations, the Indians dominated the Japanese pair, ranked 34th in the world, and raced to a 10-0 lead in the opener before Nomura and Shimogami finally opened their account.

After the mid-game interval, the sixth seeds began to play better and reduced the gap to four points at 10-14. However, Satwik and Chirag quickly regained control.

The first half of the second game was closely contested, with Nomura and Shimogami trailing by only two points. But Satwik and Chirag continued to stay ahead and eventually sealed the win in a match lasting 41 minutes.

World No. 4 Satwik and Chirag are in search of their first title since winning the same tournament in 2024.