India’s top men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won gold after beating the Malaysian pair of Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi 16-21, 21-17, 21-19 in the final at the Badminton Asia Championships in Dubai on Sunday.
There was little to separate the two pairs as the opening game started on an even note.
From 1-1 to 10-10, the two moved neck and neck before a hurried shot at the net by Chirag gave the Malaysians a one-point lead at the break.
The Malaysian duo ran up a series of points to quickly eke out a commanding five-point lead at 18-13. Chirag broke the run but Ong and Teo grabbed six game points when Satwik went long.
The Indians saved two before the Malaysians won an exciting rally with Teo diving twice to keep the shuttle in play to earn the bragging rights.
After the change of ends, Ong and Teo continued their impressive run, moving to 6-2 early on before zooming to 10-4.
The Malaysians were relentless in their approach as Satwik and Chirag failed to match up to their rivals, allowing the Malaysians to enter the mid-game break with a 11-6 lead.
Ong and Tea maintained a five-point lead at 13-8 before the Indian pair scripted a recovery. Satwik produced a backhand kill followed by a net error from Teo, who also sent the shuttler out, as soon the tables turned.
The Indians were 18-15 up as errors crept into the Malaysians game. Satwik and Chirag earned three game points and converted it on the first chance with Teo committing an error at the net.
The decider started with the two pairs trading blows. Ong and Teo showed great technical acumen as they slowly eked out a three-point lead at 8-5.
With Chirag spraying his smash into the net and following it up with another, the Malaysians grabbed an 11-8 lead at the break.