Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty became the first Indian pair to win gold at the Badminton Asian Championships on Sunday.
After losing the opening game and going down 7-13 in the second, the Indians roared back to life and defeated One Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi of Malaysia 16-21, 21-17, 21-19 in the final at Dubai's Sheikh Rashid Bin Hamdan Indoor Hall, Al Nasr Club.
This is another big win for the Indian duo, who have come of age since their Olympic debut in Tokyo. Under the guidance of Danish star, Mathias Boe, Satwik-Chirag have broken new ground for Indian badminton.
IT’S A GOLD 🥹
— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) April 30, 2023
The wait of 58 years finally comes to an end as our very own Sat-Chi clinch the historic 🥇 medal. 2️⃣nd for 🇮🇳 after 1965, 1️⃣st in MD category 🥳🥳
📸: @badmintonphoto @himantabiswa | @sanjay091968 | @lakhaniarun1 #BAC2023#IndiaontheRise#Badminton pic.twitter.com/3NQbqwy7al
Their perfomance at last year's Thomas Cup was one of the keys to India winning the men's team event for the very first time. In 2022, they also won gold in men's doubles at the Commonwealth Games and a bronze at the World Championships in Tokyo.
By winning gold on Sunday, Satwik-Chirag ended India's 58-year wait for a title at the Badminton Asian Championships.
What is India's record at the Badminton Asian Championships?
Since 1962, India has won two gold and 16 bronze medals at the continental Championships in various events.
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Dinesh Khanna had won the first gold medal for India at the Asian Championships, when he defeated Thailand's Sangob Rattanusorn in the men's singles final in 1965 at Lucknow.
In men's doubles, India's best performance before this was bronze-medal finish by Dipu Ghosh and Raman Ghosh in 1971.
Road to the title
Satwik-Chirag, who won the Swiss Open in March, came up with some fine performances at the Badminton Asian Championships as well. This is how the sixth-seeded Indian pair progressed in the tournament:
beat Tan Wee Kiong/Tan Kian Meng 21-14, 21-17 in the first round
beat Na Sung-seung/Jin Yong 21-13, 21-11 in the second round
beat third seeds Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan 21-11, 21-12 in the quarterfinal
beat Lee Yang/Wang Chi-lin 21-18, 13-14 (retd) in the semi-final
beat One Yew Sin/Teo Ee Yi 16-21, 21-17, 21-19 in the final
What is next for badminton stars Satwik-Chirag?
The Indian pair are hoping to take the winning form to Sudirman Cup, which will be held in Suzhou, China from May 14-21. The Sudirman Cup is a mixed team event that is held once every two years.
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