Sindhu is one of India's most decorated Olympians who has inspired a generation to take up badminton, and is now building her academy to nurture the next
Badminton player PV Sindhu
Image: Mexy Xavier
Before Indonesian Irwansyah Adi Pratama took up the assignment of coaching PV Sindhu in early 2025, he was asked, “Why Sindhu?” Why would a storied badminton coach take on a player who’s going through a title drought, has been saddled with injuries and, at 29, is perhaps running her last mile?
“When I spoke to her, I saw her determination,” says Pratama, who is credited with the rise of former Asian champion Anthony Ginting and former All England champion Jonatan Christie. “And I knew this wasn’t the end—it was the beginning of a new chapter.”
Sindhu herself would probably be the first to admit that she hasn’t had a great run of late. The Paris Olympics in 2024 was the first time in eight years that she didn’t end up on the podium—her 21-19, 21-14 loss to China’s He Bingjiao in the pre-quarters, after levelling up at 19-19 in the first game, “still stings”, she says. The Syed Modi Open in December 2024 is the only BWF World Tour title the former World Champion has won since July 2022. But count her out at your own peril, because when the going gets tough, “you keep grinding, even when there’s no light at the end of the tunnel”, Sindhu tells Forbes India.
“Matches and phases are different beasts. A phase feels heavier—it sits on your shoulders. But I’ve been through both,” she says. “My World Championship journey took five tries. Two bronzes, then two silvers—one of them after losing an absolute battle to Nozomi Okuhara, who’s now a dear friend. I lost 22-20 in the third. That broke me. But I picked myself up, and in 2019, I finally won gold—beating Okuhara 21-7, 21-7. That wasn’t just a win; it was a story of belief—that even from the lowest of lows, you can rise again.”
(This story appears in the 18 April, 2025 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)