Thailand Open: Satwik-Chirag Rally Past Goh-Izzuddin In Three-Game Thriller, Enter Final

A resilient Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty staged a memorable comeback to storm into the Thailand Open Super 500 men's doubles final with a thrilling three-game win over Malaysia's Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin in Bangkok on Saturday (May 16, 2026).

Top seeds Satwik and Chirag, who won the title in 2019 and 2024, displayed remarkable grit under pressure to pip the third-seeded Malaysian pair 19-21, 22-20, 21-16 in an intense semi-final that lasted 82 minutes.

"It feels good. We didn't start off the year that well, we were also not good mentally because of not a really good start.

"As players we are very very driven and we really wanted some answers and finally the bronze at the Thomas Cup especially boosted our confidence and here we are playing our first final of the year," PTI quoted Chirag as saying after the match.

"Hopefully we can go and win the title." It will be their third final appearance at the USD 500,000 tournament and first of the season.

The Indian duo will have to recover from the gruelling match when it faces Indonesia's Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Marthin in the summit clash.

How Satwik-Chirag Won The Semi-Final

The Malaysians made a strong start, dominating the front-court battle to lead 3-1, but the Indians quickly caught up with some fine finishing to make it 5-5.

The match was replete with lightning-fast rallies, relentless angled attacking returns and immaculate defending. The Malaysians had their noses ahead for most of the first half of the opening game, going into the break with an 11-8 lead. There were some fierce smashes from Chirag and Izzuddin, while Goh produced a few delectable drop shots.

Unforced errors from Chirag, who found the net and also went long and wide, only increased the deficit to 9-15. The Indians tried to narrow the gap to 12-16, but Izzuddin’s powerful smashes and quality defending against a barrage of attacks helped the Malaysians open up an 18-12 lead.

Two errors from Goh and a long shot saw the Malaysians’ lead reduced to three points at 18-15. Another net error from the Malaysians made it four straight points for the Indians.

But the Malaysians regained the serve and when Chirag completely miscued a shot, it handed them three game points. They squandered two before Satwik hit the net to concede the opening game.

After the change of ends, it was once again a closely contested affair as the two pairs moved from 3-3 to 6-6. Both pairs engaged in short rallies, with Satwik and Chirag varying the pace of their smashes and inducing errors to lead 9-6.

A return of serve into the net from Chirag and a body shot from the Malaysians cut the lead to 10-9 before the Indians took a two-point advantage at the interval.

Goh stepped up at the net to produce a winner as the Malaysians again clawed back to 13-13. A superb smash from Chirag helped the Indians once again open up a 16-14 advantage.

Another return of serve into the net from Chirag made it 16-16. A successful challenge on a serve error took the Indians to 18-16 and then 19-16. Chirag then pushed one wide, but the Malaysians sprayed one long to hand over two game points to the Indians.

Satwik and Chirag squandered both, first when Chirag found the net and then when the Malaysians unleashed a smash.

At 20-20, the Indians came out on top after the highest-intensity rally of the match, which saw both pairs defend relentlessly. This time they converted after Izzuddin sprayed one wide.

The decider again started on an even keel with Satwik taking more initiative, including unleashing a flurry of smashes. There was little to separate the two pairs as the score moved from 3-3 to 5-5.

The Indians then reeled off six straight points, with the Malaysians committing too many unforced errors, as Satwik and Chirag opened up a decisive 11-5 cushion. A brutal smash from Satwik and then a push to the backcourt meant the Indians were leading 13-6.

The Malaysians tried to mount a comeback, reducing the gap to 13-17, but they were too erratic as Satwik and Chirag found a way to make it 19-14.

Chirag was called for a service fault for height before Satwik unleashed a cross-court smash to earn five match points. A lucky net cord delayed the inevitable before Chirag dispatched one to secure a place in the final.

(With PTI inputs)