The Indian duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were defeated by South Korea's S.J. Seo and M.H. Kang in the India Open 2024 final held in New Delhi on January 21. In a riveting match at the Indira Gandhi Stadium on Sunday, Kang and Seo made a remarkable comeback to overcome the highly favored local team with scores of 15-21, 21-11, 21-18, in a contest that lasted an hour and 5 minutes.
Kang and Seo achieved a historic milestone as the first Korean men's doubles team to clinch the India Open, a prestigious Super 750 tournament. This 3rd-seeded pair has a track record of outperforming local favorites in high-stakes matches, exemplified by their victory over Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen in last year's World Championships final in Copenhagen.
The atmosphere in the IG Stadium was electric, rivaling the excitement seen in some of the world's most iconic venues. The Delhi audience flocked to the stadium to support Satwik and Chirag, who were vying for their first title of the season. They had reached the final with commanding victories in both the semi-final and quarter-final.
The Asian Games gold medalists and Khel Ratna Award winners ignited the crowd's enthusiasm, prompting cheers and dancing after swiftly winning the first game 21-15. Satwik and Chirag displayed aggression and sharp reflexes, initially causing trouble for the world champions. However, Kang and Seo regrouped during the break and came back strong, quickly gaining an 11-5 lead.
In the first game, Kang and Seo seemed hesitant about their defensive play, but they demonstrated remarkable resilience in both the front and back courts during the second and third sets, effectively keeping Satwik and Chirag at bay. Coach Mathias Boe advised the Indian pair to inject more energy and respond faster during the rallies at the conclusion of the second game.
The audience regained its enthusiasm as Satwik and Chirag rallied from a 1-5 deficit, managing to stay close to Kang and Seo throughout the match. However, despite the crowd's support, a few unforced errors towards the end cost the 2021 champions another title in New Delhi.
This marks the second consecutive final loss for Satwik and Chirag. The Indian duo, set to be ranked No. 1 in the BWF rankings update on Tuesday, suffered a defeat to China's Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in the Malaysia Open final in Kuala Lumpur last week.
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