French Open 2026: Satwik-Chirag lose to Popov brothers, face third straight first-round defeat

FILE PHOTO: At 7-13, Satwik (right) and Chirag (left) kept pushing with hard mid-court drives and big back-court smashes in the first game but the Popovs held their lead through good rotation and steady net play. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty lost 19-21, 21-18, 13-21 to brothers Christo Popov and Toma Junior Popov in the opening round at the French Open in Paris on Tuesday.

The local favourites made a sharper start as they raced to a 3-0 lead in the first game against the champions from two years ago.

Playing in front of a supportive home crowd, the Popovs settled quickly, using their familiarity as a pairing to stay compact in defense and keep the fifth-seeded Indians from building early pace.

Having conceded early points through service, return hesitations and unforced drive errors as they tried to force the pace against the Popovs’ solid defense, Satwik and Chirag were left chasing the opening game at 5-11.

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The Indians, two-time World Championships bronze medallists, pushed hard with sharp drives and back-court smashes but the Popovs held a 7-13 lead through solid rotation and steady net control.

Satwik and Chirag bounced back from a first-game loss to take the second game 21-18, cutting out their early errors using the former’s powerful smashes and the latter’s tight net control to level the match.

However, the Frenchmen dominated the decider, taking an early 6-0 lead. The Indians reduced the deficit to four points at the final change of ends but could not close the gap any further.

The Popovs came out on top in the 61-minute battle, securing their maiden win over Satwik-Chirag in four meetings.

The rough patch continued for the Indian duo as they succumbed to their third straight first-round loss, a run which began at the Asian Games.