The disappointing run of Indian shuttlers continued with the first round exit of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty at the Singapore Open on Wednesday.
The world No. 5 Indian pair lost to world No. 24 Japanese duo of Akira Koga and Taichi Sato 18-21, 21-14, 18-21. The women's doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand lost from a comfortable position to Nga Ting Yeung and Pui Lam Yeung of Hong Kong 14-21, 21-18, 19-21.
The Indian challenge now rests with Kidambi Srikanth, Priyanshu Rajawat and MR Arjun-Dhruv Kapila.
In a fast-paced match, Satwik-Chirag secured a three-point advantage at 15-12. But the Japanese duo came up with four points to secure a one-point lead (16-15). And at 18-17 they seized control.
In the second game, Satwik-Chirag bounced back and dominated their rivals to win the game at 21-14. After a see-saw battle in the third, the two teams were level till the 15th point. Three net chords went in favour of the Japanese, helping them to clinch the decider. Treesa-Gayatri fought back after being outclassed by their rivals in the first game. With Treesa earning points with cross-court smashes and Gayatri controlling the net, the Indians won the second game.
In the third game, the Indian duo lost their way when up 18-16. A couple of unforced errors helped Nga-Pui draw level. At 18-18, Treesa-Gayatri succumbed to pressure.
