It is a truth universally known that when Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bring out their A-game, they win.
There are a few moving parts that make up their particular brand of A-game - physical fitness, continuous concentration, aggression, mind games and an X factor that can completely change the momentum of a match. Satwik has philosophically called it hunger and a champion mindset in the past, Chirag simply refers to it as their best badminton. Whatever the components are, when they click together, there is little any opponent can do to stop the Indian duo.
They've brought this destructive A-game to New Delhi, steamrolling into the India Open Super 750 final with a commanding show. This is their third straight final, stretching back to last year, and their second straight week of play after finishing runner-up at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 last week. And it has made them the world's #1 again.
It's time we add consistency to their A-game ingredient list as well. On Saturday, they beat Malaysia's Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik 21-18, 21-14, making a very close battle look almost easy in the end. But beating the former world champions is anything but easy, a smooth win over Soh-Chia is a touchstone that signifies just how much Satwik and Chirag have grown as badminton players.
To understand the importance of the seemingly straightforward win, you have to step back and look at their history there. Around this time last year, they trailed them 8-0 in the head-to-head and had jokingly said that beating them was one of their 2023 goals. They did just that, beating them for two of their biggest wins of the year - the Indonesia Open and Asian Games.
Cut to the start of 2024 and the pair have now beaten them thrice on the trot, finding the right balance of offense and defence and fearlessness. Satwik, ever expressive, was honest about what it meant to cross this barrier.
"People used to say, we never won against them after seven or eight meetings. I used to feel then, 'It's okay, we might lose 10 times or 100 times also but at least one time we will win.' Once we crossed that border for the first time, then I knew there wouldn't be any fear for us, we could beat them anytime. It took us a while to cross that line. When it mattered really, it has happened. Indonesia, Asian Games, and today." That one time came in the final of their first Super 1000 and they've not looked back since.
On a cold night in New Delhi on Saturday, they brought the fire with them as they looked to make it quick, sharp points. But the Malaysians fought fire with fire in a first game that was too close to call till 17-17. The strokeplay was fast and frenetic and the scores were deadlocked repeatedly, with neither pair able to take a lead. Then, the A-game arrived, and two quick points forced errors as the Indians sprinted to the finish with four straight points.
The start of the second game was slower, and the Indians would have had flashbacks of the lapses \from last week where they trailed in the second game in every match and needed big comebacks. Satwik spoke about how that was one thing they were looking to categorically fix this week, which they did successfully. On Saturday too, they didn't let the lead slip, fighting back from 6-10 down to draw level at 13-13, at which point Chirag's winner hit Soh in the eye and virtually ended the game.
That moment when SatChi entered their 2️⃣nd #YonexSunriseIndiaOpen final in jam-packed IG Stadium 😎🔥🇮🇳#YonexSunriseIndiaOpen2024 #IndiaKaSmashMania#BWFWorldTourSuper750#IndiaontheRise#Badminton pic.twitter.com/oQXhqxH6Ue
- BAI Media (@BAI_Media) January 20, 2024
But the end should take nothing away from what was a complete performance including some very smart defensive play, which is still a developing facet in their game, and they are not afraid admit it.
"We are never really comfortable playing in defence. We are very confident in our offense and we want to attack throughout, from 0 to 21 points. But things have changed now, and we can defend as well, which sometimes shocks the opponent....to beat these guys, we need to be good in defence, it can't be always all-attack. We have to be calm, make them tired and then attack. We have been working on it with [coach Matthias] Boe for a while now," Satwik said.
In the final, they will take on reigning world champions Seo Seungjae and Kang Minhyuk. Chirag called them a formidable pair and the left-right combo's defence is top-notch. But the good news for Indian fans is that they have not quite withstood the Indians' attack. Satwik and Chirag lead them 5-1 and beat them last in a sensational semifinal, saving six game points by turning on an extra gear to win in straight games.
This final will also have an extra element to their A game, crowd support. The fans in New Delhi have been tremendous in Sat-Chi's words, and deserve praise for staying back late, enduring a cold wave and poor scheduling of India matches. When they won the tournament in 2022, it was a Super 500 played without spectators. Last year, they had to withdraw due to an injury to Satwik.
This time, Satwik and Chirag have all the right weapons to make their A-game take over and if they do, another India Open title is inevitable for the soon-to-be world #1s.