CWG 2018 | Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty win Silver in men’s doubles badminton

Ahead of the final against the British opposition, a lot was expected from young Indian pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who were touted to create history by becoming the first Indian pair to win a men's doubles medal at the Commonwealth Games. But it was not to be this year, as the duo had to settle for Silver after a brilliant show from Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge ensured that the Gold medal would be England’s this time.

At 17 and 20 respectively, Satwik and Chirag form a formidable pair that has proved its mettle in international badminton, often punching above their weight, only to fall short of podium finishes. This was the same case this time as well, as British duo proved their mettle and comfortably ran the show in Gold Coast.

Ellis/Langridge took the lead from the first shot of the match and did not seem to look back from that point. After the first break in game one, the Indian duo trailed by a scoreline of 11-7. The Indians looked to shut down from that point as Ellis and Langridge went on to win the game by a score of 21-13.

It was the same scenario in the second game as the Indian youngsters found it hard to keep up with the pace of the English pair. Something happened in the mid-game interval though as the Indian pair won four points in a row and cut the lead to just two points. But the British duo recovered to win the game 21-16 and in doing so won the Gold in the men’s doubles event. Rankireddy/Shetty had to make do with a Silver but will be proud of their performance in the prestigious tournament against a top opposition.