Satwik-Chirag storm into China Masters final with three-game win

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty overcame Malaysia's Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub and Tan Wee Kiong 21-15, 18-21, 21-11 to reach their third China Masters final, staying on course for a second title of the season

Shenzhen: Indian men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty produced a tactically astute performance to overcome Malaysia’s Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub and Tan Wee Kiong in three games to book their third China Masters final and move just one step away from a second title of the season here on Saturday.

World No. 5 Satwik and Chirag, who finished runners-up at the 2023 and 2025 editions, recovered from a second-game lapse to prevail 21-15, 18-21, 21-11 over the world No. 29 Malaysians in one hour and five minutes.

---

The Asian Games champions will face the winner of the other semifinal between Malaysia’s Tee Kai Wun and Yap Roy King and China’s He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu in the summit clash.

The Indians came into the match with a 2-0 head-to-head lead against Nur and Tan, having defeated the Malaysians at the 2024 Thailand Open and 2025 Malaysian Open.

Tan, 37, is a veteran doubles player who won the silver medal at the Rio Olympics with Goh V Shem.

Playing in their fourth consecutive semifinal, Satwik and Chirag, seeded fourth, fell 0-5 behind but responded with seven straight points, including a gruelling 34-shot rally, to move ahead 7-5.

Three errors from Nur then helped them extend the lead to 10-6. Chirag and Satwik committed a few errors of their own but held an 11-9 advantage at the interval.

On resumption, Satwik’s angled smashes kept troubling the Malaysians as the Indians moved to 15-12 and then 17-12 after another error from Tan.

At 18-15, the pairs engaged in an extraordinary 54-shot rally, with the Malaysian player even managing to keep the exchange alive while on the floor before eventually sending the shuttle long.

Nur then miscued another shot to hand the Indians five game points. Satwik and Chirag converted on their second opportunity to take the opening game.

After the change of sides, the Malaysians again made a quick start, racing to a 4-0 lead, but Satwik and Chirag recovered swiftly, using a fine flick serve to draw level at 5-5.

The two pairs then engaged in a series of cross-court returns, mixed with powerful smashes and quick interceptions. Tan struggled to exert himself in the game, while Nur remained erratic.

The Indians edged ahead 10-8, but two front-court errors from Satwik brought the Malaysians back on level terms. Another Satwik error at the net allowed Malaysia to take an 11-10 lead into the interval.

A body smash aimed at Nur kept the Indians level at 13-13 after the changeover, but Tan then combined a drop with a smash to put Malaysia ahead 14-13.

The two pairs continued to fight tooth and nail, trading points all the way to 18-18 before the Malaysians edged ahead and forced a decider.

The Indians put the slip-up at the back end of the second game behind them and opened up a 5-2 lead. Chirag was particularly sharp in finding gaps and leaving the Malaysians cramped for space.

A fine moment of sportsmanship followed when Chirag apologised and high-fived Tan after a shot came off the frame of his racket to give the Indians a 7-3 lead.

Satwik and Chirag continued to dominate the rallies and entered the interval with an 11-4 advantage.

Satwik then unleashed another brutal smash at Nur to make it 13-6 as the Malaysians began to run out of steam and belief. It was one-way traffic thereafter, with the Indians firmly in control. Chirag’s shot landing on the backline earned them 11 match points.

Tan saved two, but Chirag converted on the third opportunity, dispatching a flick serve to seal the win.