Virat Kohli Salutes Saina Nehwal's Legendary Career That Put Indian Badminton on Map

Nehwal on Tuesday confirmed she had pulled down the curtains on her illustrious badminton career lasting over a decade after knee issues kept her out of action for nearly two years.

Taking to X, Virat wrote, "Congratulations @NSaina on a legendary career that put Indian badminton on the world stage. Wishing you a happy, fulfilling and well-deserved retirement. India is proud."

"I had stopped playing two years back. I actually felt that I entered the sport on my own terms and left on my own terms, so there was no need to announce it," Saina Nehwal said in a podcast, as quoted by Olympics.com, confirming her retirement.

Nehwal, who scripted history by winning a bronze medal in the women's singles badminton event at the London 2012 Olympics, played her last competitive badminton match during the Singapore Open in 2023.

The former World No. 1 revealed that the decision was taken after severe cartilage degeneration in her knees, which made sustained high-intensity training impossible.

"Your cartilage has totally degenerated, you have arthritis... I just told them, 'Now probably I can't do it anymore, it is difficult," she said.

The great badminton player further added that her body could no longer cope with the demands of top-tier badminton.

"You train eight to nine hours to be the best in the world. Now my knee was giving up in one or two hours. It was swelling, and it became very tough to push after that. So I thought it was enough. I cannot push it anymore," Nehwal revealed.

Nehwal became the junior world champion in 2008 and scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to reach the quarter-finals in the singles event at the Beijing Olympics.

The next year (2009), the ace badminton player became the first Indian to win a BWF Super Series title, clinching the Indonesia Open. A year later, Nehwal also became the Commonwealth Games champion. At the London Olympics in 2012, Nehwal became the first-ever Indian to win an Olympic medal in badminton, clinching bronze after reaching the semi-finals of the women's singles event.

Nehwal did not stop here, as she created more history by becoming the world number one in singles badminton rankings in 2015. She also became only the second shuttler from the country, after Prakash Padukone, to reach the peak.

In 2015, the Indian badminton star clinched the silver medal after losing to Carolina Marin in the final at the BWF World Championships.

However, her career saw a dip due to frequent knee injuries. Despite the setback at the Rio 2016 Olympics, Nehwal showcased her class by clinching bronze at the 2017 World Championships and gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Apart from medals, Nehwal has also been conferred with prestigious national awards, including the Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award.

- ANI