Indian cricket star **Virat Kohli** paid a heart-touching tribute to badminton legend **Saina Nehwal** on X (previously Twitter) after she confirmed her retirement from competitive badminton. Kohli wrote: “Congratulations to @NSaina on an illustrious career that has taken Indian badminton to the world stage. Wishing you a happy, satisfying and well-deserved retirement. India is proud of you.” This message, which was shared around January 23, 2026, was much talked about among the tributes from celebrities like Sachin Tendulkar and PV Sindhu.
Saina Nehwal formally confirmed her retirement in a podcast (hosted by Subhojit Ghosh) around January 19–20, 2026, although she had not competed since the **Singapore Open** in 2023. She revealed that she had stopped playing about two years ago due to chronic knee problems, adding: “I stopped playing two years ago. I felt like I came into the game on my own terms and left it on my own terms, so there was no need to announce it.” Severe cartilage wear and arthritis made high-intensity training difficult—his knees would swell after just 1–2 hours, making the 8–9 hours of training required for elite performance impossible.
Nehwal’s career changed Indian badminton. Main achievements include: Junior World Champion (2008); First Indian woman to reach Olympic singles quarter-finals (Beijing 2008); First BWF Super Series title (Indonesia Open 2009); Commonwealth Games Gold (2010); Historic **Bronze** medal at London 2012 Olympics (India’s first badminton Olympic medal); World No. 1 ranking (2015, second Indian after Prakash Padukone); Silver at the 2015 BWF World Championships; Bronze at 2017 Worlds; And 2018 Commonwealth Games Gold. Despite injuries (including the difficulties of Rio 2016), he received **Padma Bhushan**, **Padma Shri**, **Khel Ratna**, and **Arjuna Award**.
His legacy inspires generations, and elevates the identity of the game in India. The tribute highlights her courage, global influence and her role in inspiring players like PV Sindhu.
Comments are closed.