2024 French Open: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty storm to first title of the Olympic year 

The 2024 French Open has drawn to a close, but not before treating fans to some incredible finals across all five categories. For Indian badminton fans, the highlight of the day was Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty’s match, where they took on Chinese Taipei’s Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan.

For the Indians, this marked their third finals of the year, after having finished as runner-ups at both the Malaysia Open and Indian Open in January. For the Taiwanese, this marks their second consecutive final, their first having ended with a title victory at the German Open just a week ago.

The men's doubles finals at the French Open initially began as a close encounter, with both sides staying within striking distance of each other. However, at just a handful of points in, Rankireddy and Shetty upped the pace to pull ahead, grabbing a 11-6 lead at the interval. They maintained that momentum to close out the game 21-11 with ease.

The second set saw Jhe-Huei and Po-Hsuan stage somewhat of a comeback. The Taiwanese were always ahead by a couple of points, leading 11-10 into the interval. However, the Indian World No.1s were quick to flip the script, moving ahead ,19-15, before sealing the deal, 21-17. This marks Rankireddy and Shetty’s first title victory of the Olympic year.

2024 French Open: Full finals results

Meanwhile, the other four finals at the French Open provided a similar amount of drama and action for viewers. Getting things started on finals day were women's singles stars An Se Young and Akane Yamaguchi.

Young and Yamaguchi had an electric first game, which the latter won 21-18. However, the South Korean first seed was quick to turn the tables in the second games, forcing a decider by winning 21-13, before claiming the third game and the title, 21-11.

After the women's singles finals was the mixed doubles match, which saw South Korea's Seo Seung Jae and Chae Yu Jun take on fourth seeds Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping. The Chinese emerged victorious ,21-16, 21-16, in what turned out to be an anticlimactic encounter.

Next in line at the French Open was the women's doubles, a gripping match that went the full distance. After nearly one and a half hour, Cheng Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fen beat Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida, 21-12, 19-21, 24-22.

Lastly, the men's singles finals in Paris saw an in-form Shi Yu Qi win his second title of the Olympic year, beating World Champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn, 22-20, 21-19.