Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty's Gangnam Style Dance Celebration After Korea Open Win | WATCH

India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty continued their dream run, clinching the men’s doubles title at the Korea Open with a gritty three-game win over top ranked Fajar Alfian and Muhamad Rian Ardianto in the final the Jinnam Stadium on Sunday.

Playing their fourth final of the year, the world No. 3 Indians rallied their way to a 17-21 21-13 21-14 win over the two-time world championships bronze medallists Alfian and Ardianto in a thrilling summit clash of the Super 500 badminton tournament.

After the win, Satwiksairaj and Chirag broke into an impromptu dance.

WATCH:

This is the third Super 500 title of Satwik and Chirag’s career so far after Thailand Open 2019 and India Open 2022. Overall, it is their seventh title on the BWF World Tour.

It is also the third BWF World Tour title in 2023 for the Indian duo, having won Swiss Open 2023 (Super 300) and Indonesia Open 2023 (Super 1000) earlier this year.

In the final on Sunday, Satwik and Chirag, the world No. 3 pair, made a slow start to the match and fell 19-10 behind. They picked up their game as the match progressed and continued chipping away at the Indonesian pair’s lead but it was a bit too late to salvage the opening game.

In the second game, the Indians made a much better start and took an 11-8 lead going into the interval. They upped the ante after the restart and forced a decider.

Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto, the reigning All England and Malaysia Open champions, looked to find a response to the Satwik and Chirag’s aggressive play in the third game but the Indians showed a lot of maturity, kept their noses ahead to upset the world No. 1s in a 62-minute affair at the Jinnam Stadium.

With this, Satwik and Chirag have now beaten Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto in three of their five head-to-head clashes.

The result also means Satwik and Chirag have won their last five finals on the BWF World Tour. The Indian pair last lost a title decider at the French Open 2019 against another Indonesian pair, Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo.

The BWF World Tour is divided into six levels, namely World Tour Finals, four Super 1000, six Super 750, seven Super 500, and 11 Super 300. One other category of the tournament, the BWF Tour Super 100 level, also offers ranking points.

(With inputs from Agencies)