PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal feature as India's medalists in badminton at Summer Olympics

PV Sindhu (Silver, Rio de Janeiro - 2016)

PV Sindhu (left) after winning the Silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics

With Saina Nehwal already establishing a foothold for India, it was time for the legacy to be carried forward. PV Sindhu was the perfect candidate to take charge of the baton, with her claim to fame coming during the 2012 Asian junior championship, where she won the Gold medal.

With the domestic badminton circuit gaining proper shape and extensive coverage, Sindhu was a household name even before she even won a major tournament.

Apart from winning the Bronze medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, she won a few BEF events, slowly stamping authority on the global stage.

A couple of third-placed finishes in the 2014 Commonwealth Games and 2014 Asian games meant she was a serious medal prospect at the Rio Games.

PV Sindhu’s ride to the the semi-final was smooth, with her getting the better of Laura Sarosi (Hungary), Michelle Li (Canada), Tai Tzu-ying (Chinese Taipei), Wang Yihan (China) en-route to the semi-final to set up a date with long-time rival Nozomi Okuhara. One-step away from a medal, she pulled-off a sensational performance to down the Japanese with scores of 21-19, 21-10.

The final of the 2016 Rio Olympics sparked the beginning of an illustrious rivalry between two of the modern day greats - PV Sindhu and Carolina Marin (Spain).

Although the Indian bagged the first game, the Spaniard scripted a memorable comeback to pull back the contest and eventually claim the title with scores of 19-21, 21-12, 21-15. PV Sindhu became the first Indian to win a Silver medal in Badminton at the Olympics.

Going into the 2021 Tokyo Games, she is a major medal contender, as she also created history a couple of years ago by laying hands on the World Championship title in Basel.