Success is what everyone wants, but the path is not that easy. Every parent wants their kid to grow in the best way possible, be it academics or sports. The same went for Saina’s parents as well who wanted to see their daughter excel in badminton. And thus, all the hard work paid off as she is one of the most talented players India has got. 

Who is Saina Nehwal?

We are all very familiar with the name Saina Nehwal, but let’s delve deep into her history today. Born on March 17, 1990, Saina is the only Indian female player who ranked world number 1 in 2015.

Saina comes from a family of badminton champions and draws her inspiration from her father and mother. Her parents were former badminton champions Harvir Singh and Usha Rani. Saina took up badminton to fulfil her mother’s dream as she was a state-level badminton player in Haryana.

Married to Parupalli Kashyap, renowned Indian badminton player, she also holds brown belt in karate. Her father invested everything from his provident fund to train her to be the best. We can see how that has turned out.

 

Saina Nehwal – Early Life

Saina started her training at the age of 8 when her family relocated to Hyderabad from Haryana. It was her means of expression as she could not understand the local dialect. She received her first training from Nani Prasad. But the journey to greatness has a lot of effort from both her parents.

She started her training at Lal Bahadur Stadium which was located 25 kms from her home. Her father used to drop her off every day at 4 a.m. She continued her studies simultaneously along with her training. She was also trained by S. M. Arif who was one of the most renowned instructors at the time.

Pullela Gopichand also trained her to attain her greatness. All the training paid off when she was ranked among the top 16 at the India Satellite Tournament of badminton in 2003. After this, she started participating in many national and international tournaments which finally paid off.

 

Saina Nehwal – Success Story

Saina’s attraction towards badminton came mainly from her parent’s dream of becoming a national player. It also helped her a lot because both her parents were badminton players. Once they moved to Hyderabad, she took up badminton as her means of expression and excelled in it.

Being born as a girl child in Haryana had its downfalls when her grandmother refused to see her. Despite this, she fought through. Saina had her genes in badminton and her first exposure to it was when she was carried in a pram to the local club where her mother used to play.

 

She started an early career and was groomed by her coach Arif after which she joined the Gopichand academy. However, expenses got too much for her parent’s but that too took a turn when Saina started winning national tournaments and sponsors took interest in her.

Her achievements are something she is very proud of. She has been the inspiration for many young girls and that according to the badminton star is a lot more than she could have asked for.

 

Saina Nehwal – Achievements

Saina’s list of achievements doesn’t end here. She made her first major when she won Junior National Championship at the age of 13 in the year 2003. She was then trained by S.M. Arif. The second victory soon followed later that year when she won Junior Czech Open.

In 2004 Commonwealth games, she won a silver medal. There was no going back after this for her. Her winnings were massive and made India proud. She won India a bronze medal in the year 2006 at Melbourne in the Commonwealth games.

Making India proud of her, she won Bronze for her Mother Nation in the Olympics of 2012. She also won the China Open Super Series tournament in 2014. Being the harbinger of joy to her motherland, the Indian Government honored with 4 awards. She has also won the Arjuna Award in 2009 for badminton. She has also been given the highest sports honor in India, which are the Padma Shri and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards.

Her outstanding performance in sports also won her the Padma Bhushan in 2016. She has also been able to fulfill her parents’ dream and make them proud of her. Their perseverance and motivation made her the rank world number 1 in 2015.

 

What Makes Saina Nehwal – The SuperHer?

Saina teaches us to keep on going no matter what. Fighting your way through the difficulties is what will make you strong. Once she woke up with blisters on her leg, but she never stopped. She said that she was happy that she could win matches even in such a bad condition and was really happy with her fighting spirit.

Being a sportswoman she has suffered a lot of injuries and even if she didn’t have big wins for some time, she didn’t feel disheartened. She came back with a bang and won the Australia Open Trophy later.

Saina teaches us to be determined and to keep up with our willpower. She said that she only thought of playing well and giving her best. She knew she was in good shape and she could do well. She teaches us to have confidence in our decisions and do what we think the best. Saina tells us to always prove your critics wrong. There is no better way of proving oneself than to do exactly what others think you cannot. There is joy in that achievement and Saina tells us to revel in it.

It is always important to enjoy the victories you have worked so hard to achieve as they show how much deserving you are.

Saina made a statement and has been doing so for a long time. She is now working towards building her own academy to help those who are enthusiastic about badminton. She has given many life lessons and we should all learn from them.

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