Saina Nehwal is counted among India's star badminton players. She is the first Indian woman player to win an Olympic medal in badminton. She won a bronze medal at the London Olympics. Apart from this, she has also won two medals for India in the World Championships. Saina Nehwal has revealed that she is suffering from arthritis and will have to decide about her future in the sport by the end of this year as this disease is making it difficult for her to practice as usual.
Saina Nehwal is suffering from arthritis
“My knee is not in good condition,” veteran shooter and leader of the Indian contingent at the Paris Olympics Saina Nehwal said in Gagan Narang's 'House of Glory' podcast. “I have arthritis. My cartilage is damaged. In such a situation, it is very difficult to stay involved in the game for eight-nine hours. In such a situation, how will you challenge the best players in the world. I have to accept it at some level because two hours of practice is not enough to get results against the top players.
Saina Nehwal is thinking about retirement
Nehwal said she was still thinking about how retirement would affect her, but acknowledged she would eventually have to make a decision. She is also a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. She last played a tournament more than a year ago at the Singapore Open, where she lost in the opening round.
Saina participated in three Olympics for India
Saina Nehwal said that I am thinking about retirement. It will be painful because it is like a common man's work. Obviously, a player's career is always short. I started at the age of nine. I will be 35 next year. I also have a long career and I am proud of it. I am happy with what I have achieved. I will evaluate how I feel by the end of the year.
I worked hard…: Saina
The star Indian badminton player said that playing in the Olympics is everyone's childhood dream. You prepare for years to reach that level. So, sometimes it hurts a lot when you realise that you won't get it. I have worked very hard. I participated in three Olympics. I gave my 100 percent in all of them. I can be proud of that and happy with that too.
What is this disease?
Arthritis is inflammation of the joints. It can affect one joint or multiple joints. There are over 100 different types of arthritis with different causes and treatments.