HYDERABAD: Physically hurt and psychologically bruised after the upset at the Olympics, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will end their three-month sabbatical with the China Masters which begins in Shenzhen on Tuesday.
The duo returned empty-handed from Paris Olympics and skipped all the tournaments in the last three months. Though Satwik had a shoulder injury, the main reason was that the pair needed time to recover from the loss and did not have a coach as Mathias Boe left after the Olympics.
Despite being No.1 for many weeks, they may not qualify for next month's year end BWF Tour Finals. Before their new coach arrives, the duo decided to take part in the China Masters. They got a decent draw and will face Yang Po-Hsuan and Lee JheHuei of Chinese Taipei first.
"They are in good shape now and are eager to win as many tournaments as possible. What happened has happened and they still have a long career ahead," said chief coach Pullela Gopichand.
