Badminton is a great sport for fitness and is excellent for people of all ages. Badminton is officially the fastest of all racket. Playing badminton improves aerobic fitness, with more oxygen circulated around the body to increase     muscular endurance. It also burns off calories with energy being supplied to the muscles and not forming fat. Badminton is a sports racket that is played with a shuttlecock and where the players are separated by a net that divides the court into two equal parts. Points are scored by landing the shuttle on your opponent’s side of the court. Badminton is played as an outdoor sport in several parts of the world.

A lot of sportspersons have gained a lot in this field. The decade gone by has brought about a revolution in Indian Badminton, which has carried the sport to unprecedented heights. Some of the great achievers are – Sania Nehwal, P.V. Sindhu etc. While Parupalli Kashyap, Ashwini Ponappa, Prakash Padukone, B Sai Praneeth have all made contributions along the way in this field. P.V. Sindhu is the first Indian to become the Badminton World Champion, which she 

achieved in 2019 and the only badminton player from India to win two consecutive medals at the Olympic Games. 

The first superstar of Indian badminton was Prakash Padukone. He topped the achievement that took place just two years later when he took home the All-England Open Crown, which is considered one of the most prestigious tournaments in badminton, in 1980 beating Indonesian legend. The Indian badminton legend was also one of the first sportspersons to open up an academy called the “Prakash Padukone Centre of Excellence”. 

Building on her impressive form in 2022, Indian badminton player Malvika Bansod beat her idol Saina Nehwal, in the Yonex- Sunrise India Open 2022 quarterfinals at the KD Jadhav Stadium, New Delhi. Winning or losing wasn’t her primary thought but playing against Nehwal was an opportunity in itself. In the 34-minute game, the Nagpur shuttler beat Nehwal by 21-17, 21-9 in the women’s singles second round encounter. India has given the badminton world plenty of superstars in the last decade.  

“The feeling is surreal; it has not sunk in. Playing against someone I have looked up to was a dream come true. This was the biggest win of my career so far, as I had never played against the topmost player,” Bansod spoke to The Logical Indian. Bansod calls badminton one of the most physically taxing sports, and one needs to be fit to sustain that intensity at the highest level. 

Many more players have made their place in this field. We cannot say that badminton is a very easy game as it requires a lot of strength and stamina. 

it is rightly said, “Only those who work hard are successful, not those who build air fortresses”. A karate brown belt, Saina rose through the problems to become the first Indian to reach the top of badminton rankings. Nehwal became the first Indian to reach the top of the women’s singles badminton rankings. She is first and only Indian badminton player to win an Olympic medal, first to win Commonwealth Gold in women’s singles, first to win the World Junior and Commonwealth Youth titles, and was also the first Indian to win the Indian super series title. Sania has always given her best to her profession and passion. Her success graph is clear of a determined and disciplined player. Saina’s hunger increases for success and she always tries to win high endeavours. Saina is the only one after Prakash Padukone to win the title of ‘One Day Open Super Series’. Saina Nehwal was also awarded as the Padma Shri, one of the India’s highest civilian honours.

Badminton is a sport that has been played since the ancient civilizations. Although, the sport has evolved since then, some of the rules of the game have stuck since it was first invented. It is a sport that is not expensive as it only requires one to purchase a racquet and a shuttlecock. We all should play this game and shine like all other rising stars.