India’s top men’s doubles pair Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy brilliant run at the Indonesia Masters came to an end on Saturday when they went down in straight games against world No 1 pair Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo in the semifinals.
The world No 32 combination tried their best but couldn’t find a solution to the superior serving skills and quick reflexes of their opponents, who won seven Super Series finals last year, to lose 21-14, 21-11 in half an hour.
Satwik and Chirag had upset two top-10 players in the run up to the semi-finals and though they had lost their earlier two encounters against the Indonesians, there were obvious expectations of a good fight.
They began on the right note, staying neck and neck with Gideon and Sakamuljo. They even held a one point lead at 6-5 before the Indonesians showed why they are considered to be the most dangerous pair on the circuit as they won seven consecutive points to race ahead.
The Indian combination did show some flashes of brilliance with Chirag making a couple of fine interceptions at the net and Satwik’s booming smashes winning them a few points, but the Indonesians were always in control.
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