New Delhi, October 9: It was no disgrace for the fifth-seeded Indian pair of Harmeet Desai and Souymajit Ghosh which had to be satisfied withh the silver medal as the duo lost to No.2 seeds Korean pair of Ho Kwan Kit and Ng Pak Nam 12-10, 6-11, 8-11, 9-11 in the final of the 2017 ITTF Challenge Polish Open in Czestochowa on Sunday.

The Indian pair, despite winning the first game on extended points, could not match the guile and pace of the Korean duo that went from strength to strength after levelling the score in the second game. The Indians fell short of efforts in the thrid and fourth in spite of combining well, particularly in the fourth.

It was the first time when Harmeet Desai has appeared in a doubles final of either an ITTF World Tour or ITTF Challenge Series. However, Soumyajit is a past master, having earlier this year reached the World Tour Bulgaria Open doubles final in Panagyurishte, partnering G. Sathiyan, which the pair lost to Japan’s Jin Ueda and Maharu Yoshimura. But Soumyajit did win the men’s doubles gold at the Challenge Chile Open this year when he combined with Amalraj Anthony. The pair had beaten Bulgaria’s Philipp Floritz and Romania’s Hunor Szocs in the final.