Teachers' Day Special: Saina Nehwal, Pullela Gopichand and the perfect gift

A student’s gift: Nehwal stands with her London 2012 Olympic bronze medal at Wembley Arena on August 4, 2012 in London, England. (Getty Images)

Saina was blessed with extraordinary strength, both of the body and of the mind, and Gopi was presented with the right material. He guided her expertly, helping her win one major tournament after another, until it was obvious that Saina was more than just another badminton hopeful – she was among the elite of the sport.

The relationship has not been without setbacks. There was a brief period when Saina left Gopi to train with another coach, Bhaskar Babu. A few months of indifferent form later, the prodigy returned.

In a recent interview, Gopi said Saina, after a loss in Denmark, went to him with tears in her eyes and asked him to do something about her results. Gopi told her they could move on, and promised her an Olympic medal.

“As a player you go through different stages in your career and sometimes you get advice from the wrong people,” Gopi said in the interview to Indian Express. “But the beauty of these players, to a large extent, is that they have cracked the big stage at a young age. Even if they make a mistake, they have the time to rectify it.

“And this is what makes this whole journey even better for us… With my experience and knowledge, I have the belief that this is the way it should be done. A player, at a certain point, can say, ‘ok I also have my opinion’. It was the same with Saina and I just said, ‘it’s your call’. She realised a couple of months down the line that she had made a mistake.”

The Gopi-Saina duo has revolutionised badminton in India. The Olympic medal might be the cherry on the cake, but there have been so many triumphs together that it’s hard to single out one.

Thankfully for India, their success as a combination happened when sport itself was undergoing a transformation in India. New Delhi hosted the Asian Championships, the India Open Superseries and the Commonwealth Games. Saina’s successes were seen live.

With each year, the audience has grown. It would have been so different if we were only used to reading about her triumphs in other countries. With the opportunity to watch her up close, the badminton ecosystem has changed. The IBL, where Saina was feted like a hero at every venue, was the latest chapter in this enduring saga.

“I cried after the Olympics,” Gopi said in the same interview. “It was happy tears for me. I really miss not winning at the Olympics and that hurt me for a long time. For many years, I got nightmares because of that. For me, to feel part of the glory was very important and it made me feel complete.”

What a perfect gift for a teacher from a student!