SATWIK-CHIRAG SAIL INTO FRENCH OPEN TITLE CLASH

NEW DELHI: Such is their reputation now, you expect Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty to challenge, if not beat, the best in the business on any given day. It was the same dependability last year that made them the only pair to beat eventual champions Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin at the Tokyo Olympics. It also helped them knockout defending champions Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi – who they also beat on Friday – from the World Championships in August.

It was the same consistency that took the world No 8 pair into their third final of the year – if you count out the Thomas Cup victory – by beating South Koreans Choi Sol Gyu and Kim Won Ho in the men’s doubles semi-finals of the $675,000 French Open in Paris on Saturday. This was the first time the two pairs met with the reigning Commonwealth Games champions coming out on top with a 21-18, 21-14 victory in 46 minutes at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin.

If the Indians pull off the title, it will be their third title of the year after the India Open crown in January and the Commonwealth Games gold in August.