BWF World Championships: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty, Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand Reach Pre-Quarterfinals

Star Indian men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the pre-quarterfinals with a comfortable straight-game win over Australian duo of Kenneth Zhe Hooi Choo and Ming Chuen Lim in the World Championships here on Wednesday. Indian women's doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also produced a solid performance to enter round 3 with a straight-game win over Chang Ching Hui and Yang Ching Tun of Chinese Taipei.

World No. 2 pair of Satwik and Chirag, who had won a maiden bronze in the last edition, produced a clinical display to see off their Australian rivals 21-16 21-9 in 30 minutes.

The reigning Commonwealth Games champions, who have won four titles this season, will face Indonesia's 10th seeds Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Marthin next.

Earlier, world number 19 Gayatri and Treesa, who reached the semifinals of the All England Championships in the last two editions, beat Chang and Yang, ranked 37th, 21-18 21-10 in 38 minutes.

The Indian pair, who had received a bye in the first round, will face an uphill task against top seed Chinese duo of Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan in their next round.

Satwik and Chirag hardly broke any sweat as they zoomed to 7-3 before entering the break with a four-point lead. The match hardly witnessed any long rallies as the Indians were cut above their rivals.

Satwik and Chirag maintained the lead after resumption, moving to 15-11 and then 17-13. Chirag eventually sent one down the middle to grab four game points and Satwik sealed the game with a return on the backline.

After 4-4 scoreline in the second game, Satwik and Chirag again moved ahead with their superior play. The duo entered the interval with a six-point cushion following a fast net