It is the month of May, and while the IPL has consumed the attention and sensibilities of Indian sports fans, the men's badminton team has achieved something truly special. They secured the bronze medal at the Thomas Cup - the team world championships of badminton, often considered the sport's equivalent of the World Cup. To put this achievement in context, India is not traditionally regarded as a badminton powerhouse. Therefore, this podium finish, coming on the heels of their historic gold in 2022, will firmly find its place in the annals of Indian badminton history.
BRONZE, BUT BARELY A BUZZ: INDIA'S THOMAS CUP HEROES LOST IN IPL NOISE
But there was no recognition, no celebration. On their way back from Horsens, Denmark, no one at the airport even came to congratulate the players. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, in an exclusive interview with NDTV, spoke about the effort that H. S. Prannoy and the team had made to stand out.
He said, "At the airport, there were almost 5,000-10,000 people, and nobody recognised us. That really felt bad. Just say hi to us - that's it. We don't need anything big in life. We were wearing the same uniform. We had T-shirts with the Indian flag and 'Thomas Cup' written on them. We actually printed those T-shirts ourselves as a team - it was Prannoy's idea to wear something special so everyone looks the same. The federation gave us official T-shirts, but these were something extra we did."
FROM PAWNING JEWELLERY TO WORLD NO. 3
The World No. 3 doubles player is disillusioned with the lack of support. He says that he rose through the ranks to play for India and dominate a format that historically did not have strong Indian representation. Those hard times included taking a loan against his mother's jewellery:
"When I started playing badminton, my parents did not have enough money to support my sport. They backed me with loans against my mother's jewellery. All of us struggled to be here."
INFLUENCER VS ELITE ATHLETE
He spoke about the struggles of every Indian athlete striving to reach the pinnacle, and how there is very little recognition or celebration of their efforts.
"On social media, people are telling us that we deserve to be celebrated only when we win a gold medal. But even this achievement is pretty huge. It hurts to see that a social media influencer in my own city, Hyderabad, is preferred at a restaurant, gets a table earlier than I, a Khel Ratna awardee, do."
Satwik was also part of the gold medal-winning Indian Thomas Cup team in 2022. He feels that four years ago, the sporting public may not have been aware of the magnitude of that win. However, what frustrates him is that nothing has changed.
He said, "It's not personal. I was a little frustrated - that's what is happening around, seeing things. When we won the Thomas Cup in 2022, no one even knew what it was. Then again, after four years, we are back with a medal, and nothing has changed. So I was very frustrated. We don't want anything big - we don't need prize money or anything huge. We just want people to recognise that there is an Indian badminton team. People should enjoy the sport as well. It's not only about other sports - watch badminton and be happy. That's what we want. Just recognise us."
NOT CRICKET VS BADMINTON - JUST A PLEA FOR VISIBILITY AND RESPECT
Being a massive Team India fan, he does not compare the situation with cricket - a sport that has a structured schedule and consistent viewership. However, he does point out the lack of visibility for badminton on television and streaming platforms, something that could change the game.
So, will this experience dissuade him from encouraging his children to take up badminton? He does not say so explicitly, but he does highlight the mental health challenges young athletes face due to a lack of recognition.
"I wouldn't force my kids into any sport. They can play for fun, whatever they like.
My point was - this situation hasn't changed in four years. So when will it change? A sports career is short - 8 to 10 years. There are so many unsung heroes. We also came from nothing - we didn't have money, we struggled a lot.
In badminton, it's even tougher. If you don't play for three months, your ranking drops. You have to stay in the top 32 to even enter big tournaments like the All England or World Championships. If you get injured, it's very hard to come back.
In doubles, it's even tougher - there was no clear path before us. Singles had legends like Gopichand sir, Prakash, Saina, Sindhu, Srikanth, Kashyap. But for doubles, we had to build everything from scratch."
Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy have been trailblazers. They became India's first World No. 1 doubles pair and won a historic Asian Games gold. Satwik also holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest smash by a male badminton player. There are many firsts to their names. To demoralise them now would risk jeopardising some of India's biggest medal hopes in the future
from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/9fGlLO2