Can PV Sindhu continue playing till LA Olympics in 2028? Saina Nehwal gives her take

New Delhi: It was a disappointing campaign for India’s badminton squad at the Paris Olympics 2024 as the shuttlers returned without a medal. PV Sindhu, who was one of India’s strongest contenders and was bidding to win her third Olympic medal, finished empty-handed after suffering a crushing defeat against China’s He Bingjiao in the Round of 16 of the women’s singles event.

India were hopeful of winning at least one medal in badminton at the Paris Games with Sindhu and the men’s doubles pair of Satwik Sairajrankireddy and Chirag Shetty among favourites. However, they both failed to secure a spot on the podium. An inspired Lakshya Sen looked set to bag a medal but he ended up losing his bronze medal match against Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia.

It was Sindhu’s third Olympics and the 29-year-old was looking to become the first Indian athlete to win medals at three consecutive Games. However, she had to return empty-handed for the first time after winning a silver medal in Rio 2016 and a bronze medal in the last edition in Tokyo. After Sindhu’s disappointing display in Paris, there have been concerns regarding her future ahead of the LA Olympics 2028.

There remain concerns about Sindhu as she is already 29 and might not be on top of his game till the LA Olympics 4 years later. Her former teammate and 2012 London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal recently gave his take on Sindhu’s potential participation in the next Olympics and said she can continue playing as long as her body supports her.

“Sindhu played well. Bingjiao was a little better. It’s not just about the desire or the will to play; it’s about how your body will support you as you grow older. If your body supports you, you can play for as long as you want,” Saina told Times of India.

Sindhu has dealt with several injury issues in the last couple of years and has seen a massive dip in performance after her bronze medal in Tokyo 2020. She trained under the legendary Prakash Padukone in Bengaluru ahead of the Paris Games and was expected to bounce back strongly. However, it turned out to be another forgetful campaign for Sindhu.

I and Sindhu did our best to popularise badminton: Saina

Speaking about her and Sindhu’s contribution towards badminton in India, Saina insisted the duo did the best they could to popularise the sport. Saina was the flagbearer of women’s badminton in India before the emergence of Sindhu and won laurels at the international level.

Sindhu took over the reign and added new glorious chapters in India’s badminton history by winning two Olympic medals and becoming the first woman from the country to win the World Championships. Saina said she is happy to see the rise of the youngsters like Lakshya Sen, who can be the future of Indian badminton and continue the legacy.

“Sindhu and I performed well for many years and did our best to popularise badminton in India. We definitely see more young boys (like Lakshya Sen) coming up and doing well. However, progress on the girls’ side is taking some time, but I believe we will see more players emerging in the future who can achieve success,” she added.

Lakshya became the first Indian male shuttler to make it to the semi-finals of the men’s singles competition at the Paris Olympics. However, he suffered a crushing defeat against eventual gold medal winner Viktor Axelsen in the semi-final before going down against Zii Jia in the final.

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 PV Sindhu failed to win a third medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 but the 29-year-old still has a chance to become one of India’s most successful Olympians of all time at the LA Olympics in 2028.  Badminton Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today