Happy Birthday PV Sindhu: A look at her monumental feats
What's the story
Indian shuttler Pusarla Venkata Sindhu turned 25 on Sunday.
Sindhu, who is touted as India's most prolific badminton player, became the toast of the town after winning a silver medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Known for her aggressive gameplay, Sindhu is expected to lead the baton for India in the impending Tokyo Olympics as well.
Here are her amazing records.
World Championships
First Indian player to win BWF World Championships gold
In 2019, Sindhu became the first Indian shuttler to win a gold at the BWF World Championships.
She reached the feat after having defeated Japan's Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 in the summit clash.
Sindhu tormented Okuhara in a rather one-sided tie, that last mere 38 minutes.
In the previous two editions, she had already won twin silvers (in 2017 and 2018 respectively).
Medals
Five World Championships medals
This was Sindhu's fifth World Championships medal, joint-most by a female singles player with former Olympic and world champion Zhang Ning of China.
She had previously won two silver (2017, 2018) and two bronze medals (2013 and 2014).
She is also the fastest player to claim five medals at the World Championships, having played just six tournaments to date.
Information
Longest final in World Championships' history
In the 2017 edition of World Championships, Sindhu scripted yet another record. She played the final against Okuhara for 110 minutes, however, the Japanese won 21-19, 20-22, 22-20. It was the longest final in the tournament's history.
Olympic silver
First Indian singles player to win Olympic silver
Sindhu is also India's only singles player in the sport to have won an Olympic silver.
She achieved the feat during the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Although Sindhu lost the final to Spain's Carolina Marin, she united the entire nation by advancing to it.
The only other Indian singles player to win an Olympic medal in the sport is Saina Nehwal (bronze in 2012).
Tokyo Olympics
What lies ahead for Sindhu?
The Tokyo 2020 Olympics were recently postponed by a year in the wake of coronavirus pandemic.
However, there is no clarity if the event will be staged under present circumstances.
Nonetheless, Sindhu will want to qualify for the event and then take it from there.
After winning silver at the Rio Olympics, she would be vying for gold, this time around.