They have been ranked World No.1 on two previous occasions — on October 10, 2023, and January 23, 2024 – but on each occasion, have been unable to hang on to their Numero Uno status. As tennis great Roger Federer famously declared, “It is easier to become No. 1 than to retain that ranking!”

As if to rub salt into the wounds, India’s top badminton men’s doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (or ‘SatChi’, as they are affectionately called), have failed to ascend to the top rung of the rostrum on four occasions in the past two years, having had to remain content with the silver.