Unlucky exit for Chirag-Satwik pair

The Taipei pair's win over the Indonesian duo seals India’s fate

Hyderabad: Their fate was decided much before their third and final Group A men’s doubles league match against Britain’s Ben Lane and Sean Vendy. It was a heartbreak that Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are out of the Olympics even though they finished with two wins, including an upset win over World No.3 pair, from three matches in their maiden appearance.

But nevertheless this young Indian young pair showed a lot of character in their spirited 21-17 21-19 win on Tuesday.

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“We knew the moment Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin (Chinese Taipei) won, we didn’t stand a chance. They won in two games and we won in three. It is quite sad. But unfortunately, even after winning two matches in the group, we didn’t go through. But that is badminton and we have to live with it,” said a disappointed Chirag.

The third seed Chinese Taipei pair, who lost to the Indians, defeated the top seed Indonesian pair of Marcus Gideon Fernaldi and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo in three games. The moment the Taipei duo took the crucial match to three games, India’s chances evaporated. If the Indian pair had lost to the Indonesian pair by three games on Sunday, then Chirag-Satwik could have gone through to the quarterfinals by being placed second in the group. But in the end the Taipei pair had the last laugh.

For the young Indian pair, it was so close yet so far a story. It was creditable that Satwik and Chirag kept their heads high and went about their business in their ‘inconsequent’ match against the British pair. “We kept it simple. But it was disappointing to see the Indonesians (Gideon/Sukamuljo) lose (just before we went on). I feel that we have learnt so much from this badminton experience and there are a lot of positives to take home,’’ said Satwik.

International doubles player Sumeeth Reddy said it was sad Chirag and Satwik had gone out of the Olympics in this fashion. “They played brilliantly against the Chinese Taipei pair but the straight game loss against the Indonesians did hurt them a lot. We always feel in hindsight that if only they had won a game against the Indonesians it would have been a different story.

It is cruel till before the start of the Indonesia-Taipei match, Chirag-Satwik had one leg in the quarterfinal before it disappeared before their last match against the British pair. They deserve all the accolades. But it is a good lesson and they will come out strongly in future,’’ said Sumeeth, who had participated in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Bhaskar Babu, former national coach, said it was a pleasing sight to see the way Satwik-Chirag played against the British pair even though they knew they had no chance of a quarterfinal berth. “They looked confident from the first point. Chirag was very good at the net and created the openings and Satwik was strong at the back. They were quick and played with a lot of aggression,’’ he said.

Satwik and Chirag reportedly became emotional after their unexpected exit from Olympics. According to reports, Satwik cried like a baby while talking to his parents. So did Chirag.

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