Satwiksiraj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty returned to the court on Tuesday at the Thailand Open 2026 under heavy cloud of social media monitoring. After a hard-fought bronze medal at the Thomas Cup in Denmark, where India lost 0-3 to France in the semi-finals, the world number four found themselves in the middle of a storm but ensured they avoided an opening-round skid in Bangkok, defeating the Indonesian pair of Muhammad Putra Erwiansyah and Bagas Maulana in a hard-fought game in one hour and four minutes.
Entering Bangkok as the top seed, Sat Chi needed to let their rackets do the talking. They faced the Indonesian pair of Muhammad Putra Erwiansyah and Bagas Maulana. Any rust from the Thomas Cup hiatus or mental fatigue from checking social media was immediately tested.
The Indians took the first game 21-19 and showed their typical aggressive play in the front court. However, the Indonesians rumbled in a tense second set. In a high-octane battle of nerves, Erwiansyah and Maulana beat the Indians 23-21, forcing the referees and momentarily silencing the Indian camp.
In the third game, the Brothers of Destruction class finally separated them from their opponents. Satwik and Chirag shook off a second-game skid to dominate the decider with clinical precision to seal it 21-10. The 65-minute win was a testament to their resilience – an ugly win that was needed to reset their season.
WHAT IS THE BACKGROUND?
Controversy erupted when Satwik posted a touching Instagram story after landing in Hyderabad, which included a photo of the team at a peaceful airport. Chirag quickly re-shared his caption: “Back home now. As usual no one knows what happened in the last two weeks and no one really seems to care.”
The two shuttlers spoke to India Today about their frustration and why he thinks badminton players deserve more recognition.
The statements sparked a national debate. While many fans sympathized with the lack of “big reception” for the global podium finish, others accused the duo of being entitled or seeking personal fame. Satwik later elaborated that his “explosion” came. from a place of interest in sports culture.
Satwik and Chirag will now face Malaysians Bryan Jeremy Goonting and Mumamd Haikal (93) in the second round.
Earlier on Tuesday, Olympic bronze medalist Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia, who returned to action after recovering from a right ankle injury and back problems, defeated India’s Manav Choudhary 21-19, 21-18 in a qualifying match. Cheng and Sung Yu Hsuan, while in the women’s singles qualifier, Thailand’s Y Ketklieng beat India’s A Shahapurkar 21-5, 21-7.
The big guns, including PV Sindhu, Ayush Shetty and Lakshya Sen, will begin their singles campaign on Wednesday.
In women’s singles, India have seven players in the 32-woman field: sixth seed PV Sindhu, Anmol Kharb, Malavika Bansod, Isharani Baruah, Tanvi Sharma, Devika Sihag and Unnati Hooda.
In the men’s singles, Lakshya (7) is the only seed from the country which will also feature Ayush, Kidambi Srikanth, Tharun Manneppalli.
– The end
Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
12 May 2026 18:14 IST
