The Indian pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty ended up on the losing side in the H ong Kong Open final. It was the Chinese duo of Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang that came out on top in a thrilling 61-minute encounter that got decided in the third game.
Notably, Satwikk and Chirag had defeated the Chinese pairing in their previous fixture which was a Round of 16 clash in the World Championships. However, it looks like Liang and Wang certainly learned their lessons from that defeat and came back to hand a painful loss to the Indian duo.
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Satwik-Chirag, who had been quite dominant throughout the tournament, made a great start to the match and bagged the first game 19-21. The duo made a great comeback during the game and clinched late points in order to take a valuable lead in the penultimate match.
The Chinese pair's impressive comeback
The second game also looked to be very tight with both the pairings giving it their all. However, the duo of Liang-Wang powered through in the final few points and won the game 21-14. With this, not only did they level up the match, but also shifted momentum to their side.
The Chinese pairing made an incredibly strong start to the deciding third game, taking a lead of 8-1 at one stage. Though Satwik and Chirag tried to make a comeback into the game by racking up a flurry of points by the end, the damage was already done. Liang and Wang eventually won the third game by 21-17 and went on to win the Hong Kong Open. It was quite a heartbreaking defeat for the Indian duo, who are yet to win a final since May 2024 where they emerged victorious in the Thailand Open.
Meanwhile, India's hopes now rest on Lakshya Sen, who will be in action in the Mens Singles final of the Hong Kong Open that will take place later in the day. He will be facing China's Li Shifeng in what is expected to be a cracker of a contest.