I could have done better in tennis than badminton, says Saina Nehwal

Pioneering Indian badminton player Saina Nehwal believes she might have achieved even greater success if she had chosen tennis instead of badminton.

Nehwal boasts an impressive track record in badminton, becoming the first Indian woman to attain the world No. 1 ranking and the first female athlete from India to secure an Olympic medal.

“Sometimes I feel that it would have been good if my parents had put me in tennis,” Saina shared during her “Her Story–My Story” talk at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. “There is more money and I had more strength I think. I could have done better in tennis than badminton,” she remarked.

Despite being a source of inspiration for many aspiring badminton players, the 34-year-old admits that she lacked role models when she began her journey at the age of eight.

“When I started, I didn’t have any role models to look up to and say ‘I want to be world number one or be an Olympic medallist,’ I hadn’t seen anyone do that in badminton before me,” Saina noted.

In addition to her Olympic bronze from London, Nehwal has also earned a bronze and a silver at the World Championships and multiple gold medals at the Commonwealth Games, including two in women’s singles.

She encouraged the young audience to consider pursuing a career in sports.

“I always tell children to concentrate on Games. China wins 60-70 medals; we only get 3-4. There are so many doctors and engineers, their names don’t come in newspapers,” she stated. “I want girls to especially come forward and start getting fit and get into sports. Now we are there for the children, there are world number ones, Olympic champions and so many medallists to look up to,” she added.

Reflecting on her own career, Saina emphasized that her determination and hard work helped her overcome a perceived lack of natural talent.

“I loved hard work. I was not the most talented person. I needed to practice a lot. If a talented player is doing something 100 times, I had to do it 1000 times. But I like hard work. My coaches like my never give up attitude,” she concluded.