Indian Shuttler Saina Nehwal Announces Retirement After Knee Struggles

Trailblazing Indian badminton star Saina Nehwal has officially confirmed her retirement from competitive badminton , citing a chronic knee condition that has prevented her from sustaining the demands of elite-level training .

The 2012 London Olympic bronze medallist last competed at the Singapore Open in 2023 but had not formally announced her retirement at that time. “I had stopped playing two years back. I actually felt that I entered the sport on my own terms and left on my own terms, so there was no need to announce it,” Saina said during a podcast . “If you are not capable of playing anymore, that’s it. It’s fine.”

Saina , a former world No. 1 , revealed that severe knee degeneration and arthritis forced her decision. “Your cartilage has totally degenerated, you have arthritis . That’s what my parents needed to know, my coaches needed to know, and I just told them, ‘Now probably I can’t do it anymore, it is difficult,’” she said.

The 33-year-old added that her knees could no longer endure even limited training sessions . “You train eight to nine hours to be the best in the world. Now my knee was giving up in one or two hours . It was swelling , and it became very tough to push after that. So I thought it’s enough. I can’t push it anymore,” she explained.

Saina’s illustrious career has been marked by both high achievements and significant injury setbacks. After a career-threatening knee injury at the Rio 2016 Olympics, she made a remarkable comeback to claim a World Championships bronze in 2017 and Commonwealth Games gold in 2018. However, recurring knee problems continued to disrupt her progress. In 2024, she disclosed that arthritis and cartilage wear in her knees had made high-intensity training extremely difficult.

Despite her absence from competitive play, Saina emphasised that a formal announcement was unnecessary. “Slowly people will also realise that Saina is not playing,” she said.

Her retirement marks the end of an era for Indian badminton, where she has been a pioneering figure and an inspiration for a generation of players.