Satwik-Chirag duo enters China Open semi-finals

The unseeded Indian duo stunned local favourites Li Jun Hui and Liu Yu Chen 21-19, 21-15 in a 43-minute last eight clash on Friday. Satwik and Chirag will take on World No.1 Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo of Indonesia in the semi-finals on Saturday.

The first game of Friday’s quarter-final went down to the wire, with Satwik and Chirag upping their ante to get past the third-seeded Chinese pair. The second game followed a similar pattern. Both combinations matched each other stroke for stroke to be tied at 15-15.

But this was when the Indian pair of Satwik and Chirag changed gears, pocketing six straight points to seal the tie and a place in the last four round of the event.