“Thank you so much” – Saina Nehwal’s immediate reaction to Sachin Tendulkar’s post on her retirement

After the Tennis ace, Saina Nehwal, officially retired from competitive badminton, the Indian cricket legend, Sachin Tendulkar, gave a touching tribute to her. Nehwal, during a recent podcast, broke the news that she would not be coming back to the court after playing in the Singapore Open 2023 tournament.

Just a little while after the post made by Tendulkar on X, Saina reacted with a simple but very touching message "Thank you so much," showing her usual humility even at the end of her career full of achievements.

Tendulkar in his post referred to the path of Nehwal as a channel of patience, bravery, and steadfastness. He also mentioned that she had made Indian badminton global. He pointed out that her faith and getting ready for the event were the things that changed the sport in the country and also put the students of one generation after the other who aspired to dominate globally. Further, Tendulkar commented that even though the medals signal achievements on paper, Saina's faith across the length and breadth of India is her greatest legacy.

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An injury made it a quiet goodbye but respect from a sports legend was the cherry on the cake

Saina, who has had to deal with a long-standing knee problem, revealed that she had no option but to withdraw when the pain and swelling did not stop. She said the elite badminton physical demands had become irreconcilable with her knee's condition as it was not permitting more than an hour or two of power training. Thus, she deemed it time to leave the top naturally.

It is worth mentioning that Nehwal did not make a big public announcement when she first withdrew from the sport. She said that she thought people had already taken her retirement for granted, particularly after her long absence from competition and not qualifying for the Paris Olympics.

The interaction between Tendulkar and Nehwal reunited two sports giants from different fields, highlighting the mutual respect among India’s top athletes. If Saina’s playing career is over, the loyalty in the form of respect she still receives is an indication of her long-lasting impact on Indian sports which even the next generations will notice.