India’s pioneering badminton star Saina Nehwal, the country’s first shuttler to win an Olympic medal, has formally confirmed her retirement from competitive badminton, bringing the curtain down on a trailblazing career. Though she had been away from the sport for nearly two years, Saina had not made an official announcement until now.
Speaking on a podcast hosted by Subhojit Ghosh, the former world No. 1 explained that persistent physical issues, particularly severe knee degeneration, made it impossible for her to continue at the elite level. “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,” she said.
Detailing the extent of her medical condition, Saina added, “Your cartilage has totally degenerated, you have arthritis, that's what my parents needed to know that, my coaches needed to know that, and I just told them.”
“Now probably I can't do it anymore, it is difficult,” Nehwal said declaring her retirement from Badminton. She underlined the contrast between her peak years and recent struggles, noting, “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’s enough. I can’t push it anymore.”
Born in Hisar, Saina rose to international prominence in 2008 as junior world champion and later made history by winning bronze at the London 2012 Olympics. She became the first Indian woman to attain the world No. 1 ranking in 2015 and secured multiple medals at the World Championships, Commonwealth Games and BWF events.
Saina went on to earn some of India’s highest sporting honours, including the Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Khel Ratna and Arjuna Award. Her illustrious career was impacted by a knee injury sustained at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
