India's Satwiksairaj and Chirag Exit BWF World Tour Finals in Semis

BWF World Tour Finals 2025: Indian Duo's Journey Ends

Hangzhou [China], December 20: The journey of India's premier men's doubles team, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, at the BWF World Tour Finals 2025 concluded in the semi-finals. They faced a tough match against China's Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, ultimately losing with scores of 21-10, 17-21, 15-21.

The Indian pair began the match on a high note, securing the first game decisively. However, the Chinese competitors made a strong comeback, leading to the Indian duo settling for a bronze medal.

Rankireddy and Shetty, currently ranked third in the world, initially struggled against the fifth-ranked pair, who quickly established a 4-1 lead in the first game.

Nevertheless, the Indian shuttlers rallied back, taking control and dominating the remainder of the first game. The second game saw a fierce contest, with both teams tied at 15 points. However, Liang and Wang managed to secure vital points, forcing a third game.

In contrast to the first game, the second was dominated by the Chinese pair, with Wang Chang asserting his presence at the net and Liang Wei Keng delivering powerful flick serves that left the Indian players at a disadvantage.

This match marked the eighth defeat for Satwiksairaj and Chirag in their last twelve encounters against the Chinese duo, with five of those matches occurring in 2025.

Despite this setback, Satwiksairaj and Chirag had a commendable run, finishing at the top of Group B after remaining unbeaten in three matches, making history as the first Indian doubles team to reach the knockout stages of this prestigious tournament.

This achievement also marks only the second medal for Indian shuttlers at the BWF World Tour Finals, with PV Sindhu being the only Indian to have previously won gold in the women's singles category in 2018.