P. V Sindhu from India beat the defending champion Nozomi Okuhara from Japan at the Badminton World Championship (BWC) 2019 held in Basel, Switzerland. In the process, she became the first Indian ever to win the BWC.
P. V Sindhu had a lead on her opponent right from the start and maintained her dominance until she hit gold. She won the final against Okuhara with a points tally of 21-7, 21-7. Had Okuhara won this match, it would have been her fifth gold medal; a record currently held by Chinese star Zhang Ning.
For P. V Sindhu, this gold hasn’t come easy either. She had been the runner up with a silver medal in the last two consecutive BWC. But her hard work and perseverance bore fruit this year after she marginally scored a victory against the world number 1 Tai Tzu Ying in the quarterfinals.
While the match started with Okuhara winning the first point after a prolific 22-shot rally, Sindhu came back in the game, gaining control over the court and smashing her way through to the first set victory. She got two spells of eight straight points in the first set and constantly maintained an insurmountable gap between herself and Okuhara, despite her opponent winning a few points in between.
Sindhu finished the match victoriously in just 38 mins!
It was great to see that the opponents stopped by to take a friendly selfie after the match.
Wishes poured in from all across the world for the newly crowned champion with the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and the President Ram Nath Kovind wishing her on social media.
The stupendously talented @Pvsindhu1 makes India proud again!
Congratulations to her for winning the Gold at the BWF World Championships. The passion and dedication with which she’s pursued badminton is inspiring.
PV Sindhu’s success will inspire generations of players.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 25, 2019
Congratulations @Pvsindhu1 for winning the BWF World Championship. This is a proud moment for the entire country.
Your magic on the court, hardwork and perseverance enthralls and inspires millions. Best wishes World Champion for all your future battles #PresidentKovind
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) August 25, 2019
Such a great game! We wish P. V Sindhu and the Indian Women’s Badminton Team a hearty congratulations.
