Saina Nehwal is already a household name, and now she aims to become the best in the world.
She is not used to all the fanfare that comes with being celebrated as one of the finest sporting talents in a country of over a billion. But Saina Nehwal is not complaining one bit. After her historic win in the Indonesia Super Series, Nehwal is being lauded by one and all as the best thing to have happened to Indian sport in a long time. And she knows that she deserves the praise.
After a journey which began over 12 years ago and has seen her go through some really tough times, Nehwal is finally reaping rich rewards. The Prime Minister has congratulated her, and so have the other bigwigs of Indian sports. But for her the biggest recognition is the number of titles she wins. Nothing else matters. For instance, when, at age 18, she won the Philippines Open, there wasn’t much euphoria. She is still keeping her feet on the ground. “Of course I am delighted by my recent wins and the recognition that has come along with them, but I know there is a long way to go.” She wants to become the best player in the world and knows that she is within touching distance. Ranked number 7 in the world and with age on her side, Nehwal is confident.
She was born into a sporting family. Both her parents were state-level champions in the game. Her father, Harvir Singh, a scientist with the Directorate of Oilseeds Research, Hyderabad, always had faith in her ability and took her to Nani Prasad Rao, the then badminton coach of the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP), who saw the immense potential in her.
“It all started in 1999 when I was nine years old and Rao sir asked me to play and thought I had the potential to do well.” After that, for two years she was under the tutelage of Rao, later taking training under coach S M Arif.
“It was a challenge, but then I had to sacrifice a lot of things for all this, and it has been worth it.”
She came under the tutelage of former All England Champion Pullele Gopichand. Since then, Nehwal has seen her game raised by several notches.
As a teenager, she missed out on a lot of regular stuff, but has no regrets so far “Playing for India and winning matches makes me so proud that I forget about everything else.” The only regret in her career so far is having missed out on an Olympic medal in Beijing. She got no further than the quarter finals, and that still hurts.
In her very first year on the international circuit, the Hyderabad-based teenager was India’s top woman badminton player, climbing a staggering 87 rungs in the singles rankings to attain her career-best ranking of world number 28. Since then, she has won more international tournaments and is considered one of the best players in the world at the moment. She was also identified as the most promising player in the world in 2008 by the world’s supreme badminton body.
Experts already compare her to the likes of her coach and Prakash Padukone, but she doesn’t buy any of that. “I am just four years old in the sport and still have to achieve a lot in order to be mentioned in the same breath as these legends,” she says. Of course, Gopichand has played a massive role in her career and she owes a lot to him. “He has helped me improve my game tremendously and is always there when I need any advice or anything.”
People’s expectations over the last few years have hit the roof, but Nehwal isn’t too bothered. In fact, she is quite happy that her performances are at least being noticed and talked about. “I know a lot is expected of me, but my job is to work as hard as I can and try my best on the court.”
She credits her parents for having the utmost faith and belief in her ability. In a country where cricket rules the roost and all the other sports barely get any mention, it must have been tough for her to become a global superstar. “No”, she says, “hard work always pays off in any sport, and fortunately for me I had the support of my parents and my coaches.”
She isn’t too concerned about not being recognised for her achievements early in her career. “I never got into the sport to get mobbed or anything and it was only for the love and passion for the game.” That love and passion for the game has brought her — and the country — a lot of laurels. But she isn’t one to rest easy. The last 18 months have been pretty good for her, and she wants to carry on the good work. Next on her agenda are the World Championships, and she says she plans to be ready for it.
Nehwal has been on the road for three months now, and just wants to get rejuvenated after a short break at home. “It’s hectic, but you have to pay some price in order to live your dream,” she says. As long as the titles and medals keep coming, it will be a relatively small price to pay.
| Fitness first
Her coach P Gopichand is an extremely happy man. To see an Indian achieving great things and following in his own footsteps is definitely a big high for Gopichand. “She is extremely confident and works really hard on all aspects of her game, especially fitness. She follows a strict regimen and spends at least 10 hours a day on and off the court. Her regime includes working in the gym, following a strict diet and, of course, working on various aspects of her game. Talent alone doesn’t fetch you anything, and one needs to work really hard, especially in a game like badminton where fitness levels can be tested to the extreme,” he says. Well, Saina Nehwal can surely testify to that on behalf of her coach. |
