Beijing, Sept 20: Indian men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty defeated China’s Ren Xiang Yu and Xie Haonan in straight games to reach the China Masters semifinals on Friday.The Indians won 21-14, 21-14 in a 37-minute quarterfinal at Shenzhen Arena.
Rankireddy and Shetty started strong, hitting several smashes to take a 7-0 lead. The Chinese closed in to 3-8, but India kept control and led 11-5 at the interval.
Ren and Xie tried quick flat rallies and front-court play, but the Indians stayed sharp. Shetty’s flick serve made it 13-7. Another rally ended with the Chinese hitting wide, giving India a 17-10 lead. India won the first game on their second game point.
The second game was tighter early on, with both sides level at 7-7. India pulled ahead to 11-9 at mid-game through good net play and smashes.
Satwik and Chirag then maintained pressure and sealed the match to reach the semifinals.