New Delhi,Ā July 14: Olympic bronze medalist Saina Nehwal announced her separation from husband Parupalli Kashyap on Sunday. Nehwal, who won bronze at the London Olympics 2012, took to social media to announce the news. “Life takes us in different directions sometimes. After much thought and consideration, Kashyap Parupalli and I have decided to part ways. We’re choosing peace, growth, and healing – for ourselves and each other. I’m grateful for the memories and wish nothing but the best moving forward. Thank you for understanding and respecting our privacy during this time,” Saina wrote on her Instagram story.Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap got married in 2018.
Saina and Parupalli both trained at the Pullela Gopichand academy in Hyderabad. While Saina grabbed the headlines with her brilliant performances and bronze at the Olympics, Parupalli also made a name for himself with a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games 2014.
She was the second Indian woman to win an Olympic medal after Karnam Malleshwari.
In 2015, Saina became the first Indian woman to achieve the World No.1 ranking in women’s singles.
Parupalli has not announced anything about the separation from his side.
Back in 2024, Saina revealed that she is battling arthritis and will have to decide on her badminton future.
“The knee is not very good. I have arthritis. My cartilage has gone to a bad state. It is very difficult to push for eight-nine hours,” Nehwal said on the ‘House of Glory’ podcast hosted by shooting great Gagan Narang, who was India’s chef-de-mission in the recent Paris Olympics.
“How will you challenge the best players in the world in such a state? I think I will have to accept it somewhere. Because two hours of training is not good enough to play with the highest level of players and get the desired results,” she added.