Singapore Open 2024: Top Seeds Satwik-Chirag Stunned in Opening Round

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World No. 1 pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty of India stunned by lower-ranked Denmark duo Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard in the opening round of the Singapore Open 2024 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore on Tuesday (May 28).

The Paris Olympics-bound top seeds, Satwik and Chirag, who had won the Thailand Open 2024 earlier this month, lost in straight games 20-22 18-21 to the world number 34 Danish pair in the men's doubles first round match that lasted 47 minutes on court 1.

In their first-ever meeting with the Denmark pair, Satwik-Chirag struggled to match the pace of their opponents and trailed 4-9 early in the first set, but fought back to level the score at 20-20. However, Lundgaard and Vestergaard held their nerve to take the opener 22-20.

The second game was also a closely fought contest as both pairs fought neck and neck till the scoreline read 16-16. From there, the Danish pair shifted through gears to clinch the second game by 21-18 and completed the upset win.

It turned out to be a dismal day for India as the Rankireddy and Shetty's compatriots, who played on Tuesday (May 28) all lost their respective opening round matches to make an early exit from the Super 750 badminton tournament.

While Aakarshi Kashyap and Priyanshu Rajawat failed to cross the opening hurdle in singles competition, B Sumeeth Reddy-N Sikki Reddy, Rutaparna Panda-Swetaparna Panda and Ashith Surya-Amrutha Pramuthesh fell in doubles category.

World no. 41 Kashyap lost 7-21 15-21 to Thailand's Pornpicha Choeikeewong, ranked 42nd in the women's singles opener in 46 minutes. In men's singles, Rajawat fought hard before going down 21-23 19-21 to Hong Kong's Lee Cheuk Yiu in 47 minutes.

In women's doubles, the Panda sisters played their heart out before losing 12-21 21-12 13-21 to Chinese Taipei's Chang Ching Hui and Yang Ching Tun, while Ashith and Amrutha Pramuthesh lost 8-21 17-21 to Hong Kong's Lee Chun Hei and Ng Tsz Yau in mixed doubles.

India will hope for a better outing on Wednesday (May 29) when some of the country's top shuttlers such as PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy will begin their campaign alongside few doubles teams.