Young Saina Nehwal on Sunday scripted history, becoming the first Indian woman ever to win a four-star badminton event by clinching the singles title in the prestigious Philippines Open.
The 16-year-old unseeded Indian shocked seventh seed and world no. 66 Pei Xian Julia Wong of Malaysia 21-15, 22-20 in a thrilling final at Pasig City, Manila.
Showing amazing tenacity even when pitted against the big names, the 86-ranked Saina had toppled top seed and world number four Xu Huwaien of Germany en route to the final.
"I just cannot believe it. I never thought that I could win the tournament. It will take some time for the victory to sink in," Saina told PTI over phone after her win.
"After coming so far, I was confident of winning the final because I had beaten her (Wong) in straight games before and I knew that I just needed to stay focused and not make mistakes," she said.
Saina, however, does not have enough time to celebrate her first big success at the international level, as she would be playing in the Indonesian Open starting this week.
"I do not know how I will celebrate the victory. Everyone in the team has already left for Indonesian Open and I am alone. I am leaving tomorrow for the championship."
Saina, coached by former All England Badminton Champion, Pullela Gopichand, has been in devastating form in the tournament, accounting for world no. 31 S. Mudukesan of Malaysia in the opener before beating Sachiyo Imai of Japan.
But the biggest casualty of Saina's firepower was the German Xu Huwaien in the quarterfinal. Saina turned the tables on Huwaien after a grueling three-game encounter.
"That was the biggest win. After beating the top seed, I thought I could win the tournament and I kept on playing my natural game. My movement, dribbling were very good throughout the tournament," she said.
"I had really worked very hard in the last few months and I am happy that it paid off," she said.
Saina's coach Gopichand was equally ecstatic about her feat.
"It is a remarkable achievement. It is really great. It's not easy to beat such top quality players in a big four-star event, but she always had the potential to do that. Even in the Commonwealth Games she had beaten top players," Gopichand told PTI from Hyderabad.
"It is very difficult to stay focused and especially when you are just 16 years old. The pressure cracks you but Saina withstood all these pressure situations and pulled it off," he said.
Gopichand rated Saina's title triumph as a big achievement for Indian badminton.
"This would serve as an inspiration for the young players. It would give them confidence that they can also do the same and would make them fearless while playing against big names."
At the Indonesian Open, Saina would have to qualify for the main draw as it is a six-star event and all the top players would be fighting for the honours.
"The Indonesian Open would be tougher. But my confidence level is really high after this victory."
