Saina: ‘Still can’t believe I won a medal’

Excerpts from Saina Nehwal’s interaction after winning the Olympic medal:

On winning the medal:

I still can’t believe that I got a medal, because it’s unbelievable that an Indian can get an Olympic medal. But we worked so hard… Gopi Sir worked so hard, and my parents… and all my well-wishers there in India. It’s great. I’m so happy that I could do this for my country and I came here to get a medal for India. I’m happy that I’m going back with a bronze medal for India. It’s a great feeling.

The match against Wang Xin:

I think today’s match was crucial… I was still thinking of yesterday’s match. I thought I could’ve pulled out yesterday’s match. It was still playing on my mind. I came back from 14-20 to 18-20. She was getting tired. I thought she took a break, but I didn’t know she was injured. I was confident I was coming back strong and she was getting tired. It was unfortunate that she got injured.

When I was 11-6 up, I could feel she was almost on her knees. She was asking for water breaks, and for mopping the court. I thought she fell down to take a break. It was sad to know she got injured.

Expectations and pressure:

I was scared because after I won in Thailand and Indonesia, there were many expectations. I was scared to look at the news reports. I didn’t see any paper because I would feel the pressure. I was confident of getting a medal, I had that feeling, but I didn’t want to win in this manner. I still can’t believe I did it for India, in badminton. It’s a difficult sport for women in India. I still can’t believe it.

Whether it was a relief when Wang Xin quit:

From when I started at the age of nine, until today, I’ve never won a match like this. I can’t believe the match is over. Maybe I was lucky today, but I still don’t have the feeling of winning matches like this. I was confident in the second game. The five-minute (injury) break disturbed me. She came with a different strategy in the second. When she fell, I was shocked.

On resting for this match:

I slept well last night, because I was aiming for the final. Yihan is faster, but I could handle Xuerui or Wang Xin. Yihan is tougher. What I wanted, to be in the final, didn’t happen, but I was sure I could get bronze, and I was not tense for today’s match.

I’ll be training from the next day – that’s the celebration. We’ll be relieved because we worked so hard for last five-six years, won so many titles, my main aim was to do well for my country and to get a medal. I’ll take a break now, watch some movies, because I love watching movies.

On speaking to her father:

Frankly, I didn’t speak to dad after the match, because I was upset after losing the match. It was sad yesterday that I couldn’t make the final. It was a dream to make India’s flag come up.

How badminton in India will change:

I think a lot will change, badminton will change. A lot of youngsters are coming up. Sindhu is there, but I want more girls to come up, like in Korea or China. And then you can have more results coming. Now the results are coming, and it will happen after this medal.

Saina versus China:

It’s always going to be Saina versus China. I’ll be more confident against them. This year I beat six-seven of them. Now they are very scared of me, I know that. Because when Yihan won yesterday, I could see the happiness on their faces. When they play other players, they look normal. Against me, I can see they’re scared. I’m happy I’m the only one scaring six-seven of them. I have to be ready always, fit always. I have to remember that I cannot just go on court. I
have to be ready to play long rallies and fight to the last point.