Paris (The Hawk): In the men's doubles final on Sunday, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty of India defeated Chinese Taipei's Lu Ching Yao and Yang Po Han in a straight-game victory to claim the French Open Super 750 title.
The world number 8 pair, who had placed second in the 2019 competition, used their fearsome attack to outwit the 25th-ranked Lu and Yang in the summit match's 48-minute duration to defeat them 21-13, 21-19.
Thus, the Indian duo carried on their unstoppable year, which saw them win the Indian Open super 500 crown, the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games, the Thomas Cup, and an unheard-of bronze medal at the World Championships in August.
Following this year's India Open Super 500 and the 2019 Thailand Open Super 500, it marks the pair's third world tour victory. They are the first Indian team to triumph in a super 750 competition.
Satwik and Chirag prevailed in a matchup between two attacking teams because they displayed superior tactical knowledge and a desire to rule supreme over their opponents.
The Indian team started off strong and quickly built a 5-0 advantage. They continued to advance, denying their adversary any chance to mount a retaliation.
Finally, Satwik's outstanding serve allowed them to take a six-point lead into the halftime break.
After several uneventful rallies, the Indian pair gained seven opportunities for game-winning points, and Chirag converted the first one to secure the victory.
The Taipei pair needed a strong start in the second game, and they at first appeared competitive, but the Indian couple once more made sure they had a six-point lead at the half.
However, as Lu and Yang began to take charge of the rallies, cutting it down to 10–12, the Indians were guilty of taking their foot off the gas.
The run of points was interrupted by a Lu Ching Yao service blunder, but they quickly restored parity at 14-14 when Chirag went long. Chirag made a few errors, including a service blunder, which gave the advantage to the Taipei combination.
After Yang missed a shot from the net and the Indians won a lucky net chord, the score was shortly tied at 19-19.
Satwik's thunderous smash gave them one match point, and his attacking return secured the victory.
(Inputs from Agencies)
