Indian badminton icon Saina Nehwal has revealed that she has been struggling with arthritis, a condition that has severely affected her knees and is threatening to end her illustrious career. The Olympic medalist shared that the ongoing issues with her knees have hampered her ability to train effectively. Nehwal also expressed that due to the recent challenges she might even consider retirement by the end of the year.
Nehwal, discussed her condition in a candid conversation on the House of Glory podcast hosted by Gagan Narang, India’s Chef de Mission at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
“The knee is not very good. I have arthritis. My cartilage has gone to a bad state. It is very difficult to push for 8-9 hours. How will you challenge the best players in the world in such a state? I think I will have to accept it somewhere. Because 2 hours of training is not good enough to play with the highest level of players and get the desired results,” Nehwal stated in the House of Glory podcast.
Since her appearance at the Singapore Open last year, Nehwal has not competed in any major tournaments. The 34-year-old athlete expressed her thoughts on retirement, acknowledging the limited career span of sportspeople and reflecting on her journey.
“I am also thinking about it. It will be sad because it is like a job that a normal person does. Obviously, a sports person’s career is always a short one. I started at the age of 9. I will be 35 next year. So, I have also had a long career. And I am very proud of that. I have broken my body to a great extent. I am happy with what I have done and given it all. Will assess how I feel by the end of this year,” she said.
Nehwal, a recipient of the Padma Shri, has had a remarkable career, including two Commonwealth Games gold medals in 2010 and 2018. She also made history by becoming the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in badminton with her bronze in women’s singles at the London 2012 Olympics.
