'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAKAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABgUH/9oACAEBAAAAACO0NIX/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAF/9oACAECEAAAAC//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAE/9oACAEDEAAAAEf/xAAiEAACAQQCAQUAAAAAAAAAAAABAgQAAwURBhIhExUWlMH/2gAIAQEAAT8Ax8bj8rmUNLlqC1m7LswxbCDTMW0R1/a+G8YXx7BjfrJVvE44KziBEDopZW9FdqQNgimY9j5Nf//EABcRAAMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAhL/2gAIAQIBAT8At6P/xAAXEQADAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIx/9oACAEDAQE/AHTnD//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
People often talk of Saina Nehwal's humility, and at a conference for the 2015 Bengaluru Midnight Marathon, the World No. 1 The 25-year-old has a world of accomplishments behind her – she is the first Indian to ever win an Olympic medal in badminton, a feat she achieved at the 2012 London Olympics, where she won bronze.
She spoke to Sportskeeda in an interview following the conference.
Nehwal could be titled First Indian, and not just because she is one of the nation’s most prolific ambassadors in the world of sport. She is the first Indian to win a badminton Super Series tournament, the World Junior Badminton Championships, and the first ever female silver medallist from the country at the BWF World Championships.
Despite the significant, ever-growing list of achievements Saina leaves in her wake, her humility knows no bounds.
Asked how it feels to be the world’s top-ranked player, Nehwal said “I’m not so talented..there are many, many players more talented than me. I just work very hard to stay at the top of my game.”
Nehwal trains for a staggering 8 hours a day, and she encouraged others to get into fitness whether or not they are sportspersons. “Keep fit, play a sport,” she said. “Even if you can get out for 20 minutes in a day, that’s enough.” When she’s not playing badminton, Nehwal enjoys running – which is very appropriate considering she is now the face of the Bengaluru Midnight Marathon. She prefers training in the morning, however.
She spoke highly of Vimal Kumar, who took over coaching duties this year from Indian badminton ace Pullela Gopichand. “I was ready to quit the sport last year,” Nehwal said, alluding to a lackluster 2014 season that saw her unable to progress past the semi-finals of any major badminton tournament on the calendar.
She admitted she had felt extremely demoralised then, but the change in coach appears to have brought about a transformation in her belief; this year, Nehwal became the first ever Indian woman to win a silver medal at the BWF World Championships, losing in the finals to Spain’s Carolina Marin, who was then the world no. 1.
Training in India is quite difficult, according to Nehwal. There are no female players of her calibre to train with, the ace said, continuing “I have to train with the boys here, but if the girls train more we can definitely beat all of them!”
China’s badminton players are a constant thorn in the side of their opponents, and in acknowledgement of this, Nehwal said “I worry about China every year! They have multiple players of a very high calibre, and they are constantly playing each other. They are extremely skilled because of this, and they keep players on their toes."
With all her sporting achievements, Nehwal has also been bestowed with several national awards – awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award for excellence in sport in 2010, she was the recipient of India’s fourth-highest civilian honour, the Padma Shri, that same year.
Despite all her laurels, however, she remains firmly focused on her family. “I’m very close to my mother,” she says. “When I had just started out training, I used to play against my mom all the time, and she beat me for the first couple of years. Now I just tell her to function watch() { [native code] } me play instead!” Her family have been her strongest support, and Nehwal says as a young girl, her mother told her she wanted “an Olympic medal from you.”
A young Saina had then brushed it off, saying “are you crazy?” But what had then been a pipe dream became a reality at the 2012 London Olympics.
Her rivalry with former World No. 1 Carolina Marin is well-known, and asked who her favourite opponents are she said “I do enjoy playing against Carolina, but Wang Yihan (China’s former World No.1) is one of the most enjoyable opponents. She’s beaten me so many times before, so I am still a bit afraid of her when we play.”
The 2012 Olympic bronze medalist may have beaten the Chinese player in the quarterfinal of the World Championships this year, but her record against Wang is quite poor, with the Indian having lost 9 of the 12 encounters between the pair – including a defeat at the 2011 World SuperSeries finals and at the 2012 London Olympics. While Nehwal took the bronze at the Olympics, it was Wang who took silver then.
She looks forward to their future encounters, however, and a new, refreshed Saina Nehwal has come back in full force this year to take on her opponents and detractors with equal ease.
