Away from the badminton court suffering from a stress fracture, two-time Olympic medalist and defending Commonwealth Games champion PV Sindhu dazzles on the cover of Grazia magazine’s September fashion special.
By skipping the World Championships in August and taking a well deserved break from badminton’s busy and demanding schedule, PV Sindhu opened up on many topics – speaking candidly about sacrifice, her depression and defining moments, sexism in sport and the future of India as a sporting nation for the cover story of the Indian edition of the Italian fashion magazine.
Jogging over the years, Sindhu told stories of the sacrifices she had to make and what her family, as a whole, had to do, to encourage badminton and for her to play the sport with such intensity.
“I played at the railway grounds long before we could access the facilities at LB Stadium and Gachibowli (in Hyderabad) which were 27 kilometers from my home. My dad was my rock; driven to school and practice at odd hours. As I continued to build my skills and confidence, my parents amazed me with their dedication, and eventually left their own lucrative jobs to support me.” , Sindhu revealed in the interview.
But her rise to greatness has not always been easy and the former world champion and only Indian female athlete with 2 Olympics medals had setbacks that taught her the hardest lessons of her life.
“At first, success eluded me. I realized there was still a lot of work to do and I decided to commit to it with all my heart. I played matches where I grossly misjudged my opponent’s strategy or where I got injured in the middle game – but every disappointment can lead to new learning if you allow it,” a wiser Sindhu conveyed.
A famous and beloved sportswoman by now, PV Sindhu has matured beautifully and it shows in the calm poise she has in the photos, where she stuns but stands as well, seamlessly, both on and off. ground.
Looking optimistically at India’s sporting future, Sindhu hopes more initiatives can be taken to promote sports culture and tap into talent. “I hope more schools and colleges will prioritize physical education and working out, even an hour a day. Parents need to be open-minded and supportive of dreams and career aspirations not conventional,” she said, extremely pleased with the progress in weightlifting, wrestling and kabaddi also developed.
PV Sindhu hopes to return to action in October when the badminton season resumes in full.