Badminton star Saina Nehwal made a dream debut at the Olympics with a stylish 21-9, 21-8 win over 30th ranked Russian Ella Karachkova in the women's singles on Saturday.
"It's a great feeling particularly because I won well. It's so important to begin with a good win in such a major tournament," Saina told Sunday MiD DAY after conquering her first hurdle in 28 minutes flat.
National coach Pullela Gopichand had said before the match that the biggest enemy for the 18-year-old would be nerves. But she overcame that in fine fashion, and later humbly walked off the court as though nothing happened. But there sure were a few butterflies beneath that calm appearance.
"I was anxious before the start because this is such a huge event. I have played in many big tournaments but nothing compares to the Olympics. The noise, the crowd, it was just unbelievable. And this is only Round One," she added.
"I was leading comfortably, so I was deliberately playing long rallies. I also reduced my smashes and just worked around on the drop-shots, to keep up my confidence level for upcoming matches."
Saina now faces Larysa Gryga of Ukraine "I'm not worried about winning or not winning a medal here. It's important that I give it my best shot and take each match as it comes. I have been playing well in the run-up," she signed off.
