Bangkok, May 18 (FN Agency) Indian men’s doubles pair Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy have advanced to the semifinals of the Thailand Open 2024 badminton tournament, following a commanding victory at the Nimibutr Stadium here late Friday. Ranked third in the world, Chirag and Satwik showcased their dominance over Malaysia’s Arif Junaidi and Yap Roy King, who are ranked 64th, by winning their quarterfinal match 21-7, 21-14 in just 38 minutes. The top-seeded Indian pair, who previously won the BWF Super 500 event in 2019, will face the unseeded South Korean duo of Ming Che Lu and Tang Kai Wei in the semifinals on Saturday.In the women’s doubles quarterfinals, India’s Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponappa, the fourth seeds, triumphed over the sixth-seeded South Korean pair of Lee Yu Lim and Shin Seung Chan.
The match was a grueling contest that lasted 76 minutes, with Crasto and Ponappa emerging victorious with scores of 21-15, 21-23, 21-19. The Indian women’s doubles team will face a challenging semifinal against the top-seeded Thai pair, Jongkolphan Kititharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai, who are ranked 10th in the world.Crasto and Ponappa currently hold the 21st position in the world rankings. Meanwhile, in the men’s singles quarterfinals, World No. 84 Meiraba Maisnam, who had previously caused upsets by defeating World No. 9 HS Prannoy and a higher-ranked Danish player, was overpowered by the reigning world champion and World No. 8 Kunlavut Vitidsarn. Maisnam lost 21-12, 21-5 in a match that lasted 34 minutes.The Thailand Open 2024 badminton tournament is set to conclude on Sunday.