Satwik-Chirag Settle for a Bronze Medal at BWF World Championship

India's top pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty settled for a bronze medal at the BWF World Championships after suffering a heartbreak in the semi-final against Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi of China.

- AGENCIES

In a grueling contest that lasted for an hour and seven minutes, Satwik and Chirag's valiant fight ended in a 19-21, 21-18, 12-21 defeat against Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi. The first two games remained a closely knitted affair, but the Chinese pair ran rampant, dominating the Indian duo in the decider.

Satwik and Chirag stepped on court number one, won the toss and opted to receive first with the former on the firing line. With a precise return of serve from Satwik, the Chinese pair managed to hit the shuttle wide as the first point went straight to the Indian pair.

With back-to-back smashes from the Chinese pair that straightaway crashed into the net, Satwik and Chirag opened up a 4-0 lead. Chen and Liu bounced back quickly to open their account and cut down the deficit to 4-1.