Pictures BS News Agency.
Bibhash Lodh, BS News Agency: Good news for Indian sports lovers. Two Indian badminton stars Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have won the men's doubles title of the China Masters BWF Super 750 tournament. The two Indian shuttlers, ranked 5th in the world, were runners-up in this tournament in 2023 and 2025 and stopped in the semifinals in 2024. However, in the final on Sunday, Satwiksairaj and Chirag won the title after defeating the former world number 4 Chinese pair of He Ji Ting and Ren Jiang Yu 11-21, 21-13 and 21-17.
Satwiksairaj and Chirag pair were eliminated from the competition after losing in the quarterfinals of the BWF Championships held in Delhi last month. This is their second Super 750 title there, their 10th title on the BWF World Tour and their fourth overall this year. This is the first China Masters title for Asian Games champions Satwik and Chirag in men's doubles since the tournament began in 2005. This marks the second time the two Indian champions have reached the final of a BWF World Tour tournament in 2026. Earlier, they were runners-up at the Thailand Open and champions at the Singapore Open in May.
This success at the China Masters will give Satwik and Chirag extra confidence in their fight to retain their gold medal ahead of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan. Satwik's reaction to becoming champions, "The experience and feeling of playing here is always different. We played before, both of us, after recovering from injuries. We played after the 2024 Paris Olympics and reached the semi-finals. I played last year too, but despite not being in form, we lost in the final. This time, however, it feels better because I don't have to return empty-handed. Especially after recovering from the injury and achieving success. Except for the first round, every match went up to three games. We went ahead with a specific plan this time. I am happy to put it into practice.’
According to Chirag, ‘It is a special feeling to win the title. Winning the China Masters and playing in the Asian Games is definitely a confidence booster. I will work hard for the next 10 days after returning home to win a medal in the Asian Games. To make the country proud by winning the gold.’