Japan Masters 2023: Satwik-Chirag face early exit

HS Prannoy will be back in action after injury break.

India’s number one doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty faced early exit from the Japan Masters 2023. The former world number one duo, who returned to the BWF World Tour after a short break, lost to Chinese Taipei’s Lu Ching Hao-Yang Po Han in three games (21-16, 18-21, 16-21) in the opening round of the men’s doubles fixture.

The Indian pair had a good start but couldn’t capitalize against the WR-21 pair who closed down the match comfortably.

After a good start, Satwik and Chirag committed too many unforced errors and at times misjudged play. They trailed for the majority duration of the second game and went into the mid-game interval with a two-point deficit (9-11). After the break, the duo bounced back to level scoreline at 14-14 but the Chinese Taipei surged ahead by scoring few valuable points leaving the Indians behind.

In the decider, none of the teams had a clear advantage till the final mid-game break. At 10 all, Lu Ching Hao-Yang Po Han broke the deadlock to go into the final phase with a one-point lead. From here, there was no looking back as they scored four straight points to go from 14-12 to 18-12 and almost seal the match.

However, Satwik and Chirag held on and saved two match points. But that wasn’t sufficient for them to progress to the pre-quarterfinals. With this, India’s only men’s doubles pair exited the tournament with three singles players waiting to open their account.

HS Prannoy is back in action post his bronze medal run at the Asian Games 2023. He is returning back after completing his rehab from back injury he suffered at the Asiad. Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat are the other two men’s singles players taking part in the competition.

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