LUCKNOW: In a disappointment to their fans, India’s top men’s doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, have withdrawn from the Syed Modi India International Badminton Championship 2024, citing injury concerns.
Speaking to TOI, Chirag said, “I felt some pain just below my right knee during the China Masters semifinals last week. I was hoping to recover in two or three days, but it will take a few more days to heal completely. I didn’t want to enter the tournament half-heartedly or with any niggles, so we decided to withdraw and focus on recovery.” He added that now they are targeting the Malaysian Open, India Openand Indonesia Open in Jan after full recovery.
“We played the Syed Modi tournament for the first time in 2016, and in 2018, we even reached our first final here, defeating our former coach, Mathias Boe, in the semis. It was memorable because it was the last time we faced Boe and Morgenson. As youngsters, it gave us a huge boost to play the finals here. I hope the tournament offers a similar experience for all athletes participating. I wish my fellow Indian players the very best and hope we win multiple finals,” Chirag said.
Reflecting on their stint at the China Masters, Chirag said, “There were a lot of positive takeaways and no real drawbacks. When we entered the tournament, we weren’t sure how far we could go since we were playing after almost three months, and Satwik was returning from an injury. Winning the first match against the Chinese Taipei pair was crucial, as was the victory against Denmark’s Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the quarterfinals.”
“Reaching the semifinals was beyond our expectations, especially since we had practiced for only about a week before the tournament. Given the limited preparation, making it to the semifinals was a significant achievement. It showed we’re back to playing at the highest level.” Chirag, who plans to visit Ayodhya today, remains optimistic about the months ahead.
