India’s top men’s doubles shuttlers Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy were left frustrated by their own fans lack of recognition, despite the national team returning from the recent Thomas Cup with a bronze medal.

The world number four pair lamented the fact nobody recognized them, let alone acknowledge them when they landed at the Hyderabad airport after a seven-hour flight from Europe.

“Nobody even asked us who we are, what medals we have won. We were wearing Thomas Cup jerseys, but everyone was busy with cricket, politics. When we landed at the airport, all the players were just booking cabs, nobody seemed to notice.

“I felt really sad looking around at that airport scene, top athletes trying to book cabs. Even when we won it back in 2022, it wasn’t celebrated the way it should be celebrated,” they said.

Rankireddy was even as bold to say he would not allow his kid to play badminton due to the lack of awareness from the Indian public.

“If you are strong mentally, you’ll manage. Otherwise, it’s really tough to keep going on like this.”

The 2022 champions crashed out of the semis this year after a 3-0 defeat to France, with Chirag-Satwiksairaj not even getting a chance to play in that contest as all three of their men’s singles lost in the first three matches.