Saina Nehwal (born 17 March 1990) is a retired Indian badminton player who changed the sport in India. She won India’s first Olympic medal in badminton, a bronze at London 2012. In 2015 she became the first Indian woman to be ranked world number one. She won 24 international titles, including 10 Superseries events, along with two Commonwealth Games golds and medals at the World Championships. She announced her retirement in January 2026.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Saina Nehwal |
| Born | 17 March 1990, Hisar, Haryana, India |
| Age | 36 |
| Sport | Badminton (women’s singles) |
| Coaches | Pullela Gopichand, U. Vimal Kumar |
| Highest ranking | World No. 1 (April 2015) |
| Olympic medal | Bronze, London 2012 |
| Spouse | Parupalli Kashyap (m. 2018) |
| Career | 2006–2026 |
Early Life
Nehwal was born in Hisar, Haryana. Her father, Harvir Singh, was an agricultural scientist, and her mother, Usha Rani, had played badminton at state level. When she was eight the family moved to Hyderabad, where she took up the sport. She later trained at the academy of the former All England champion Pullela Gopichand.
Career
Nehwal won her first major international title as a teenager in 2006. She reached the quarter-finals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and won the World Junior Championships that year. She became the first Indian woman to win a Superseries title, and in 2010 she won Commonwealth Games gold in Delhi.
At the 2012 London Olympics Nehwal won bronze in women’s singles, India’s first Olympic medal in badminton. In April 2015 she became the first Indian woman to reach world number one. She won silver at the 2015 World Championships and bronze in 2017, and she took a second Commonwealth Games gold on the Gold Coast in 2018, beating P. V. Sindhu in the final. She also won bronze at the 2018 Asian Games.
Injuries affected Nehwal’s later career. She announced her retirement from professional badminton in January 2026. Her success inspired a generation of Indian players.
Personal Life
Nehwal married the fellow badminton player Parupalli Kashyap in December 2018. She joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2020. Her autobiography, Playing to Win, was published in 2012, and Parineeti Chopra played her in the 2021 biopic Saina.
Awards and Honours
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where was Saina Nehwal born?
Saina Nehwal was born on 17 March 1990 in Hisar, Haryana, India and is 36 years old.
Featured image: President Pranab Mukherjee honouring Saina Nehwal after her London 2012 Olympic bronze. Photo by President’s Secretariat, Government of India, licensed under Government Open Data License – India, via Wikimedia Commons.
