Indian Cricket Legend Sachin Tendulkar showered praises on Indian ace badminton player Saina Nehwal following her retirement announcement. She last played in 2023 at the Singapore Open. She cited chronic issues which prompted her to take the decision.
Taking to his X, Sachin Tendulkar posted a lengthy message for the former World No.1, saying that her career is proof that greatness is built one day at a time with patience and consistency.
The Indian cricket legend further went on to add that Saina carried Indian badminton to the world stage and was able to transform the course of the sport in the country. Tendulkar concluded his message by thanking Saina for her contributions. He wrote:
“Dear Saina,
“Beyond the medals lies your greatest achievement. Inspiring young athletes across the country to believe that global success is possible. Every sporting journey evolves, and while one phase ends, another begins. One where your experience, perspective, and love for the game will continue to guide many. Thank you for everything you’ve given to Indian sport. Your influence will be felt for generations.
Saina revealed reasons for not publicly announcing her retirement. She felt people would have assumed it by then. For Saina it wasn’t such a big matter to announce her retirement. She just felt her time was up because she couldn’t push much, and that her knee is not able to push like before.
You train eight to nine hours to be the best in the world, now her knee was giving up in one or two hours. It was swelling and it emerged very tough to push after that. So she thought it’s enough. She can’t push it anymore.
News Edit KV Raman
