Indian badminton star Saina Nehwal recently shared a reflective perspective on her career, expressing the belief that she might have achieved greater success had she pursued tennis instead of badminton. Speaking at an event at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Saina openly discussed her journey and the hypothetical scenarios she sometimes contemplates.
“If I had played tennis instead of badminton, I believe I would have done better,” Saina remarked. Known for her groundbreaking achievements, Saina made history as India’s first female shuttler to reach such high acclaim and became the country’s first female athlete to win an Olympic medal.
During the ‘Tichi Katha-My Katha’ interaction, Saina candidly spoke about her desire to play tennis, a sport she perceives as more lucrative. “Sometimes I wish my parents had made me play tennis. It has more money and I think I can do more”, she said. Saina, reflecting on her physical capabilities, noted, “I was strong. I can perform better in tennis than in badminton.”
Despite her hypothetical musings, Saina emphasized her role as an inspirational figure in badminton. She highlighted that when she began playing at the age of eight, there were no role models for her to emulate in the sport. “When I started, I had no role models,” she recalled. “There was no one who said I wanted to be a world number one or an Olympic medalist. I have never seen anyone do that in badminton before me.’”
Saina’s career is decorated with significant accomplishments. Besides her historic bronze medal at the London Olympics, she has secured bronze and silver medals at the World Championships and numerous gold medals at the Commonwealth Games. Reflecting on her journey, Nehwal shared a piece of advice with young athletes: “I always tell the kids to focus on the game,” said Saina. China wins 60-70 medals and we get only three-four medals. There are so many doctors and engineers and their names do not appear in newspapers.’
