Saina Nehwal had history in her grasp
when she reached the final of the All
England Badminton Championship last
month, but she couldn’t quite put away
Spain’s Carolina Marin, a player she had
vanquished in three previous meetings.
It was nevertheless a huge achievement
for Nehwal, who was trying to become
the first Indian woman to win an All
England title and join her coach, Pullela
Gopichand, and Prakash Padukone as All
England champs.
“The silver I won
is going to get a pride
of place among the
trophies which Papa keeps them with
such care at our Gachibowli home,” she
told Times of India. “By reaching the finals
of this championship, I already made
history. That I didn’t win is okay. Not
everything is in my hands. It’s in God’s
hand, I would say. My job is to work hard.”