Indian badminton stars Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty’s social media activity caught the eyes of sporting lovers in the country following the national men’s badminton team’s return to the country from Denmark after settling for the bronze medal in the 2026 Thomas Cup, which is regarded as the ‘World Cup of Badminton.’
This marked only India’s second podium finish in the tournament’s 77-year-old history over 31 editions. The only instance was the historic triumph in 2022, when they won the gold medal. The pairing of Satwik and Chirag played a key role in both the victory in 2022 and the third-place finish in 2026.
Satwik-Chirag’s Emotional Post
As the team landed back in India, Satwik took to Instagram and posted an image of the team at the airport. It was the caption, which caught eyeballs as the star shuttler pointed out that people were not aware of the team’s achievement. The 25-year-old posted a collage image of one picture each from the team’s departure and arrival with a classic ‘how it started, how it ended’ caption.
“Back home now. As usual, no one knows what happened over the past two weeks, and it seems like no one really cares,” wrote Satwik. The same post was reshared from Chirag’s accounts.
Fans were sympathetic towards the medal-winning stars and called for sportspersons to be given more respect in India.
And it seems like No One Really Cares!! 🙁Satwik – World Number 4 Men Doubles player with Chirag posts a Status on IGBack Home Now, As usual No one Knows what happened over the past two weeks and it seems like no one really caresIndia Won Bronze Medal, second ever in the… pic.twitter.com/SE1tNzYlxh
— IndiaSportsHub (@IndiaSportsHub) May 5, 2026
This is sad. Chirag bhai, We know. We watched. We care. And we are always behind you. Keep your head high champs🇮🇳🏸 pic.twitter.com/lYToWwBoki
— Rambo (@monster_zero123) May 5, 2026
India’s Thomas Cup 2026 Campaign
The 31st edition of the tournament took place at the Forum Horsens, an indoor sports arena in the city of Horsens, which is situated in Demark. India advanced from Group A as the second-placed team behind China. They finished above Canada and Australia, who were knocked out. The 2022 champions defeated Chinese Tapei in the quarter-finals 3–0 before losing to France in the semi-finals by the same margin.
Satwik and Chirag did not get a chance to play against France, as the men’s doubles clash was slated as the fifth and final match. However, they played the second game of the last eight clash, which they won in three sets (23-21, 19-21, 21-12).
