CHENNAI: Seven winters ago, Saina Nehwal was operating at an elite level. Having won the Syed Modi International and having also reached the All England Open final, the Haryana shuttler had entered the India Open as one of the favourites.
And she had managed to live up to her billing, displaying some top-level badminton then. More importantly, she had claimed the World No 1 status in the process, becoming the first woman from the country to reach that level.
That seems a distant past now. Currently ranked World No 25, those golden days have evaded her for the last few years or so, mainly thanks to her recurring injuries. They have been such a headache that she could barely walk at a certain stage.
Having last played in October (she retired due to injury then), she entered the India Open in a bid to find her feet and regain some vital match practice ahead of a big season. Saina's aura of the past might be missing but her eagerness to learn and her fighting spirit remains intact.
On Wednesday, the London Olympics bronze medallist got just the start that she needed, overcoming Czech Republic’s Tereza Svabikova, who retired at the start of the second game when Saina was leading 22-20, 1-0. Saina is just pleased to be back in business.
"Playing after long, this (experience) just gives you confidence on how to garner points because during practice, you're unable to do the same and the intensity level is not the same. I'm happy with some of the points that I got and I hope it helps tomorrow (Thursday)," she said after the match.
Having played for over a decade at the elite level, it has taken a toll on her body. Medical appointments have become frequent over the years and Saina tried to explain where she stands in regards to her physical health. "I had three issues at a time in my knee, I tore my cartilage, had issues with my patella (...). The knee went through a lot of trauma, something that happened over the months. Finally, a stage came that I could not walk (...) after the French Open. When I came back and did the MRI scan on my knee, my doctor said that I should not go for the World Championships. But I told him there are a lot of tournaments around the corner but the doctor said that 'we can't do much, you have to regain strength'. I'm happy with the rehabilitation and I had good practice for seven, eight days and I'm happy that I could play the level that's required for a match. I wasn't expecting that I'm going to play the India Open. Let's see how far I can progress," she explained.
Her immediate challenge is Malvika Bansod, who got the better of Samiya Imad Farooqui 21-18, 21-9 later. It could be a tricky test as Malvika is regarded as one of the budding stars in the country. Aakarshi Kashyap and HS Prannoy were other shuttlers from India who posted wins to advance.