Saina Nehwal, born on March 17, 1990, is an Indian professional badminton player and a former world No. 1. She has won 24 international titles, including ten Superseries titles. Nehwal achieved the world No. 1 ranking in 2015, becoming the first female player from India and the second Indian player overall, after Prakash Padukone, to achieve this feat.

Nehwal has represented India three times in the Olympics, winning a bronze medal in her second appearance at the London 2012 Games. She has achieved numerous milestones in badminton for India. She is the only Indian to have won at least one medal in every major individual event organized by the Badminton World Federation (BWF), including the Olympics, the BWF World Championships, and the BWF World Junior Championships.

She became the first Indian female and the youngest Asian to win a 4-star tournament in 2006. Nehwal is the first Indian to win a Super Series title and has reached the final of the BWF World Championships, marking another first for an Indian player. She also led the Indian team to win a bronze medal in the 2014 Uber Cup, India’s first-ever medal in the tournament. Nehwal has won two singles gold medals at the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and 2018, becoming the first Indian to achieve this feat.