Winning at home and becoming No. 1 is a double treat: Saina Nehwal

Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon did not stand a chance. Saina Nehwal had become the World No.1 badminton player a day before their final at the India Open Super Series, and her swagger on court was evident from the start. Nehwal smashed her way through Intanon, the 2013 champion, in straight sets. For Nehwal, it was homecoming: She had won the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold here at the Siri Fort complex in New Delhi, triggering a run that had seen her become the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal in badminton, win a string of Super Series titles, and reach the final of the All England Championship.

Even her former coach and mentor Pullela Gopichand, or the only other badminton player to have been World No. 1 from India—Prakash Padukone in 1980—cannot lay claim to an Olympic medal, or indeed these many top-flight titles. Yet, Nehwal had not won the India Open since it was upgraded to Super Series level in 2011. Edited excerpts from an interview after she won her maiden India Open title.