World number ones are out!

For the second round of the men’s double draw, the Indians (n°1) Satwiksairaj RANKIREDDY and Chirag SHETTY  were opposed to the Indonesians (n°10) Mohammad AHSAN and Hendra SETIAWAN. In an epic battle from the beginning to the end, the Indonesians won in 3 sets 25/23 19/21 21/19.

The beginning of the first set is contested while the players score each in turn (8/8). At the break, the Indonesians lead 11/10. World number ones make a lot of unforced errors and the experimented Indonesians take the opportunity. The pair AHSAN – SETIAWAN is more offensive, and it pays as they win the 1st set 25/23. The Glaz Arena is holding its breath, waiting to see what happens next.

The start of the second set is like the end of the first, each pair scores each in turn. Most of the points unforced errors from the opponents. The Indian attacks are starting to be more decisive, and they are ahead at the break (11/9). The second part of the set is more pleasant, with both pairs playing at the highest level at the same time. The Indians eventually win it to come back in the game (21/19).

Again, the last set is really close, and nobody is able to make a difference. At the break, the Indians are shortly ahead by only one point. In a breathtaking end of match, SHETTY and RANKIREDDY saved two match points to end up losing on a missed serve (21/19). There will be no back-to-back for the Indians, who are leaving earlier than anticipated the Yonex French Open.

Looking back on their victory, today’s winners were shining: "Thanks to God we were able to win today. It was a very complicated match, but we're very happy. We just did our best. We lost very badly last time in Dubai, and we didn't want to repeat the same performance.”

In the quarterfinals, the Indonesians Mohammad AHSAN and Hendra SETIAWAN will play against the Chinese pair LIU Yu Chen and OU Xuan Yi (n°8).