Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty beat Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri 21-11, 16-21, 21-11 at the BWF World Tour Finals 2025 to boost semifinal chances
Rankireddy and Shetty took the first game, lost the second, then dominated the decider
Next, they face Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in the final Group B match
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty edged closer to a semifinal berth with a thrilling 21-11, 16-21, 21-11 victory over Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri in Hangzhou on Thursday.
The win marked India’s top men’s doubles pair’s second straight Group B triumph, strengthening their push for the knockout stage.
The Indians dominated the first game, racing to a 6-0 lead and never letting the Indonesians back into the contest, closing it comfortably at 21-11. Alfian and Fikri fought back in the second game, pulling ahead mid-way and holding on to take it 21-16, forcing a decider.
In the final game, Satwik and Chirag regained control, building a seven-point cushion at the mid-game interval and cruising to a 21-11 win, avenging their earlier loss to the Indonesians at the Australian Open.
With Alfian and Fikri eliminated, Satwik-Chirag now face Malaysia’s Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in their final Group B match on Friday. While history favours the Malaysians, Satwik-Chirag will draw confidence from their straight-game win over the duo in the China Masters semifinals earlier this year.
Satwiksairaj and Chirag's strong run in Hangzhou signals their intent to make men’s doubles history, with PV Sindhu still the only Indian to have lifted the title, back in 2018.
