This decade has been a great one for sports in India, as we saw the rise of many youngsters, the rise of the Indian Football Team, a new cricket team, and many sporting clubs in various sports, including the field of Racquet sports.
Lets have a look at the Sportswoman of the Decade –
P.V. Sindhu – Badminton
The world champion and Olympic finalist P.V. Sindhu has more achievements to his name than any other Indian badminton player in the past. Hailing from Hyderabad she has continued and has improved the bar set by Saina Nehwal, with her consistent performance. She has five world championship medals to her name which includes a gold, two silver and two bronze and, silver medals from the Olympic Games, the Asian Games, the Commonwealth Games, the South Asian Games and the national championship.
Sindhu is a top contender from India for all the significant events. Her most considerable success came through the 2018 BWF World Tour Finals. She felled Akane Yamaguchi, the defending champion and top seed Tai Tzu-Ying and two former world champions, Ratchanok Intanon and Nozomi Okuhara. She later on added BWF Superseries titles and six Grand Prix crowns and stands out as the best performer of the decade.
Sania Mirza – Tennis
Sania Mirza, who gave birth to a son, Izhaan in October 2018 decided to make a comeback and she won her 42nd WTA doubles title at the Hobart International in January 2020, alongside the company of Nadiia Kichenok. She also registered three crucial wins, and along with Ankita Raina, led the team to the Fed Cup finals, which was first in Indian history.
Sania Mirza’s doubles titles include three women’s trophies, three mixed doubles Grand Slam titles and two WTA Tour Final crowns. At the 2016 Rio Games, she along with Rohan Bopanna reached to the semifinals. She is an epitome of belief, confidence and hard work and provides inspiration to many youngsters.
Saina Nehwal – Badminton
Saina Nehwal, or we call her the torchbearer of the Indian badminton since the past 14 years and is the only woman to be ranked no.1 in the world. Her biggest achievement was at the 2012 London Olympics with a bronze medal. Her victory at the 2012 Indonesian Open placed her among the best, where she finished it off in style by defeating one of the most dominant players of China, Li Xuerui in the final.
She also has a bronze medal to her name from the 2017 World Championships. Her persistence and determination and, her positive attitude have kept her going in the International stage for more than 15 years.
