OLYMPIC MEDALLIST Saina Nehwal has announced her retirement from competitive badminton, stating that her body can no longer withstand the physical demands of the fast-paced sport.
Nehwal has been sidelined for the past two years due to a chronic knee condition and last competed at the highest level at the Singapore Open in 2023. The London 2012 Olympic bronze medallist confirmed her decision during a podcast appearance.
“I had stopped playing two years back. I actually felt that I entered the sport on my own terms and left on my own terms, so there was no need to announce it. If you are not capable of playing anymore, that’s it. It’s fine,” Saina said.
The former world No. 1 explained that her decision was driven by severe degeneration in her knee, which made sustained high-intensity training impossible. She added that even limited training sessions had become unmanageable, leaving her with no option but to step away from the sport.
“I didn’t think it was such a big matter to announce my retirement. I just felt my time was up because I couldn’t push much, that my knee is not able to push like before. You train eight to nine hours to be the best in the world, now my knee was giving up in one or two hours. It was swelling and it became very tough to push after that. So I thought it’s enough. I can’t push it anymore,” she added.
Nehwal suffered a career-threatening knee injury at the 2016 Rio Olympics but staged a strong comeback, winning bronze at the 2017 World Championships and clinching gold for India at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
However, persistent knee issues continued to hamper her progress. In 2024, she revealed that she had developed arthritis and that the cartilage in her knees had worn away, making it increasingly difficult to train and compete at the intensity required for elite-level badminton.
