P.V. Sindhu conferred the Arjuna Award

P V SIndhu received her Arjuna Award yesterday from Sports Minister Jitendra Singh

India’s newest badminton star P.V. Sindhu received the prestigious Arjuna Award from Sports Minister Jitendra Singh on Tuesday, reports TOI.

Sindhu could not be present at the actual function in Rashtrapati Bhawan on August 31 due to her participation in the final of the Indian Badminton League (IBL). Hence, she could not personally receive it from the President of India.

Sindhu received the customary statuette, a citation and a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh from Jitendra Singh.

The award was in recognition of the shuttler’s rapid rise in the international badminton scene which included a first ever medal by an Indian woman at the World championships last month, when she won the bronze at the BWF World Championships in China.

En route to this historic achievement, she had the prized scalps of former World Champion Wang Yihan and Asian Games gold medallist Wang Shixian, both from China. She also broke into the top 10 in the world rankings, though she has now slipped a few places to 12th.

The Hyderabadi also won her first ever Grand Prix title when she won the Malaysia Open women’s singles trophy in Kuala Lumpur in May. She also led her team, the Awadhe Warriors, to the final of the inaugural IBL.

Sindhu first came into the limelight when she claimed the top prize at last year’s Asian Youth under-19 Championship which triggered a great sequence of results for the lanky teenager.