Malaysia Open 2025: Satwik-Chirag Crash Out After Straight Games Defeat in Semi-Finals

Star Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty crashed out of the Malaysia Open 2025 following straight games loss in the men's doubles semi-final on Saturday (January 11) at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The seventh seeded Indian duo lost by a scoreline of 10-21, 15-21 to Korean pair Seo Seung-jae and Kim Won-ho in the last four men's doubles clash that lasted 40 minutes on the main court.

This was the first ever meeting between the two pairs in the BWF ranking tournaments, and it was the South Korean pair who emerged victorious against the superiorly ranked Indian duo in the first BWF World Tour event of 2025.

Satwik-Chirag's defeat also meant the Indian challenge came to an end in the tournamtn as the duo were the lone standing shuttlers from the country in Kuala Lumpur this week. The likes of Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy, Malvika Bansod, Tanisha Crasto-Ashwini Ponnappa and Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand all exited the Malaysia Open Super 1000 tournament in earlier rounds.

Coming back to the semi-final clash, Satwik-Chirag were slow off the blocks in the opening game, allowing their Korean opponents to race to a 11-6 lead at the interval. Seo and Kim took the momentum and claimed the first game 21-10.

In the second game, the world number 9 Indian duo put on a better fight, leading 11-8 at the halfway point. But, their advantage was short-lived as the Korean duo fought back after the interval to win the game and the match 21-15.

Following this result, the Korean duo will head to the finals, where they will meet the winner of the other semi-final between Malaysia's Tee Kai Wun and Man Wei Chong, and China's Chen Boyang and Liu Yi. The Indian duo, on the other hand will head home to prepare for the next tournament.

What next for Satwik-Chirag?

Rankireddy and Shetty, who failed to make the second successive Malaysia Open final, will next be in action at the Yonex Sunrise India Open, which is scheduled to start on Tuesday (January 14). The Indian duo will face Malaysia's Wei Chong Man and Kai Wun Tee in the opening round of the next tournament on the BWF World Tour 2025.