Mumbai, July 17: India's top men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bowed out of the Japan Super 750 tournament after losing to Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang of China in the second round here on Thursday. In a clash of former world number one pairs, the Indians went down 22-24, 14-21 in a 44-minute contest against the fifth-seeded Chinese duo. Lakshya Sen Bows Out of Japan Open 2025, Star Indian Shuttler Loses in Second Round To Kodai Naraoka.

With this result, Paris Olympics silver medallists Wei Keng and Wang Chang extended their head-to-head record against the Indians to 7-2. After a sluggish start, Satwik and Chirag found their rhythm to lead 18-14 in the first game, but couldn't sustain the momentum as the Chinese fought back to snatch a thrilling opener. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty, Lakshya Sen Progress to Round of 16 at Japan Open 2025.

The second game followed a similar pattern, with the world number six pair continuing their dominance. The Indians faltered in both attack and defence, slumping to their fourth consecutive defeat against Wei Keng and Wang Chang.

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