Victorious Sindhu meets Sports Minister

Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday met newly crowned world champion P.V. Sindhu and said the star shuttler has made India proud by becoming the first Indian to win gold at BWF World Championships.

Sindhu on Sunday demolished Japan's Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 in the final of the women's singles event to clinch gold in Basel, Switzerland.

"Honoured PV Sindhu who created history and made India proud by winning the World Badminton Championship for the first time. My best wishes to her in her pursuit to bring more glory to India," Rijiju tweeted after meeting Sindhu.

The 24-year-old Indian shuttler reached Delhi early on Tuesday and received a hero's welcome at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.

"It's a great moment for me. I am really very proud to be an Indian. I wish I will get many more medals for the country," Sindhu told reporters.

"Hard work is the key to success. I would like to thank each and every fan of mine. It's because of their love and support that I am here," she added.

It was her fifth medal at the World Championships, which is the joint highest in women's singles in the history of the tournament along with Xhang Ning of China, a two-time Olympic gold medallist.

Apart from the two silvers which Sindhu won in the last two editions, she had also won the bronze in 2013 and 2014.

Indo-Asian News Service