Shifting the attention of a cricket-crazy country like India to a different sporting event was unimaginable. Saina Nehwal pushed that boundary till it existed no more. The ace Indian badminton player achieved the unthinkable.
Much to her credit, she did it single-handedly. Saina became the first-ever Indian shuttler to secure a medal in the Olympics. She achieved this historic feat during the 2012 London Olympics.
The Haryana-born also emerged as the first Indian player to win the prestigious BWF Super Series titles in 2009. Born on March 17, 1990, Saina started playing Badminton at the early age of eight. She is also the only Indian badminton player to have won at least one medal in every BWF major- the World Championships, the World Junior Championships and the Olympics as well.
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As Saina Nehwal celebrates her 33rd birthday today, it is time to explore some of her records and memorable wins:
Saina Nehwal claimed her first professional success in 2002 after winning the Sub-Junior National title in the U-13 category. Two years later, she was crowned Senior National Champion. Her first silverware in the international circuit occurred in 2005. Saina won the Asian Satellite Badminton Tournament to secure her first trophy on the global stage.
In 2008, Saina Nehwal became the first Indian woman to feature in the Olympic quarterfinals. Her dream run in the Beijing Olympics came to an end at the last-eight stage after she suffered a defeat at the hands of Indonesia’s Maria Kristin Yulianti.
A year later, Saina Nehwal emerged victorious in the Indonesian Open and with this, she became the first Indian athlete to claim a BWF Super Series title. Saina won gold and a bronze in women’s singles and mixed doubles at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
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The 2012 Olympics proved to be a memorable outing for Saina Nehwal. She won a historic bronze medal at the London Olympics.
The year 2014 was quite productive for Saina Nehwal. She won a bronze at the 2014 Asian Games. Saina also got the better of PV Sindhu in the finals of the India Open that year. A brilliant show in 2014 paid off a year later after Saina claimed the number-one spot in the world. Notably, she became the first Indian shuttler to attain the top spot in the global standings.
Saina Nehwal continued her dominance at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She succeeded in claiming two gold medals in Glasgow, Scotland. She also managed to win a bronze medal at the prestigious Asian Games.
Overall, Saina Nehwal has managed to win more than 20 titles in the international circuit.
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