PV Sindhu clinches career-first Commonwealth Games singles gold

PV Sindhu, the Indian badminton star, has managed to script a unique milestone in her well-decorated career by adding to it her first Commonwealth Games gold in the singles division. 27-year-old Sindhu had earlier won the silver medal in women’s singles at the 2018 Gold Coast edition of the event (where she defeated compatriot Saina Nehwal), and the bronze in 2014 at Glasgow.

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Sindhu was the clear favourite in this division, and she proved her mettle once again by scripting a definitive 21-15, 21-13 victory against Canada’s Michelle Li. To her credit, Li did manage to put up a strong fight at a certain point of the match despite being down 10-6 in the second game. She made the score 13-10 before Sindhu, with her sheer technical superiority, clinched the game.

India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, congratulated Sindhu on her glorious achievement:

Sindhu has won two Olympic medals in her glittering career, and also became the women’s world badminton champion in 2019 at Basel. She has also won two silver (2017, 2018) and two bronze medals (2013, 2014) each in the previous iterations of the BWF World Championships. The Hyderabad native is also a four-time gold medallist in the BWF World Tour.

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The Indian government has also bestowed her with the Arjuna Award (2013), the Padma Shri (2015), Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna (2016), and the Padma Bhushan (2020).

Day 11, also the final day of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, began on a great note for Indian athletes with Sindhu’s triumph. It remains to be seen how well athletes like Satwik Sairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty, G Sathiyan, and the men’s hockey team perform.

The 11-day multi-sport event has been a rather eventful one for the Indian contingent, and all eyes will be on the gala closing ceremony that is scheduled to begin from 12:00 AM.