Tokyo Olympics: Shuttlers Chirag-Satwik win but fall short of knockouts

Indian shutters Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj
Rankireddy failed to reach the knockout stage of the Tokyo Olympics badminton men’s
doubles despite defeating the British pair of Ben Lane and Sean Vendy in their
final Group A match on Tuesday.

The Indian pair, ranked 10th in
the world, beat their world number 18 opponents 21-17, 21-19 in 44
minutes at the Musashino Forest Plaza. However, the win was not enough for a
place in the knockouts as they finished behind Indonesia and world number three
Chinese Taipei.

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All three teams finished on same points
with two wins each and when the number of games won was considered to identify
the qualifiers, the Indians lost.

Chirag and Satwik’s straight game loss to
the Indonesians on Monday cost them dear.

Moments before the Indian pair stepped on
the court, Lee and Wang had completed a three-game win over Sukamuljo and
Gideon in the preceding group match, rendering the result of India’s contest
against Britain inconsequential.

Only the top two pairs of each group
advance to the quarterfinals.

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In London Olympics, Ashwini Ponnappa and
Jwala Gutta too had endured a similar fate when they bowed out after the points
won and lost were considered after they tied with the other two pairs in the
group stage.

The Indian duo looked in good rhythm. They
opened up a narrow 5-3 lead but the English pair came soon moved ahead 11-10 at
the break. Chirag and Satwik slowly started to dominate the proceedings and
eventually grabbed the opening game when Lane hit wide.

They again marched to a 6-3 lead in the
second game and ensured they have a two-point advantage at the interval.

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The Indian duo kept its nose ahead at
16-13, riding on the errors of their opponents.

The English pair scripted a mini comeback,
drawing parity at 18-18 and also took a lead after Satwik netted a return of
serve.

The Indians, however, were alert as they
grabbed the match point and converted it with ease to end their campaign on a
high.