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Pusarla Venkata Sindhu (born 5 July 1995) is an Indian professional badminton player. Having made her international debut in 2009, she rose to a career high ranking of no. 2 in April 2017. Over the course of her career, Pusarla has won medals at multiple tournaments including Olympics and on the BWF circuit including a gold at the 2019 World Championships. She is the first Indian to become the Badminton World Champion.
Pusarla broke into the top 20 of the BWF World Ranking in September 2012 at the age of 17. Beginning in 2013, Pusarla won a medal at every world championships, with the exception of 2015. She is just the second woman after Zhang Ning to win five or more medals at the world championships. Pusarla represented India at the 2016 Summer Olympics, becoming the first Indian badminton player to reach a final. She won the silver medal after losing out to Spain's Carolina Marin.Pusarla won her first superseries title at the 2016 China Open and followed it up with four more finals in 2017, winning the titles in South Korea and India. In addition to that, she has won a silver medal each at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and 2018 Asian Games, and two bronze medals at the Uber Cup.
With earnings of US$8.5 million and $5.5 million respectively, Pusarla made the Forbes' list of Highest-Paid Female Athletes in 2018 and 2019. She is the recipient of the sports honour Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, and India's fourth highest civilian award, the Padma Shri. She was also honoured with Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in India, in January 2020.
Early life and training
Pusarla Venkata Sindhu was born in Hyderabad to P. V. Ramana and P. Vijaya. Both her parents have been national level volleyball players. Her father, Ramana, who was a member of the Indian volleyball team that won the bronze medal in 1986 Seoul Asian Games, received the Arjuna Award in 2000 for his contribution to the sports.
Pusarla lives in Hyderabad, Telangana. She was educated at Auxilium High School, Hyderabad and at St. Ann's College for Women, Hyderabad. Though her parents played professional volleyball, Pusarla chose badminton over it because she drew inspiration from the success of Pullela Gopichand, the 2001 All England Open Badminton Champion. She eventually started playing badminton from the age of eight.
Pusarla first learned the basics of the sport with the guidance of Mehboob Ali at the badminton courts of Indian Railway Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunications in Secunderabad. Soon after, she joined Pullela Gopichand's Gopichand Badminton Academy. While profiling Pusarla's career, a correspondent with The Hindu wrote:
"The fact that she reports on time at the coaching camps daily, traveling a distance of 56 km from her residence, is perhaps a reflection of her willingness to complete her desire to be a good badminton player with the required hard work and commitment."
Gopichand seconded this correspondent's opinion when he said that "the most striking feature in Sindhu's game is her attitude and the never-say-die spirit." After joining Gopichand's badminton academy, Pusarla won several titles. In the under-10 years category, she won the 5th Servo All India ranking championship in the doubles category and the singles title at the Ambuja Cement All India ranking. In the under-13 years category, Pusarla won the singles title at the Sub-juniors in Pondicherry, doubles titles at the Krishna Khaitan All India Tournament, IOC All India Ranking, the Sub-Junior Nationals and the All India Ranking in Pune. She also won the under-14 team gold medal at the 51st National State Games in India.
Career
In the international circuit, Pusarla was a bronze medalist at the 2009 Sub-Junior Asian Badminton Championships held in Colombo. At the 2010 Iran Fajr International Badminton Challenge, she won the silver medal in the singles category. Pusarla reached the quarterfinals of the 2010 Junior World Badminton Championships that was held in Mexico. She was a team member in India's national team at the 2010 Uber Cup.
2009–2011
Pusarla entered the international circuit at a young age of 14. She was a bronze medallist at the 2009 Sub-Junior Asian Badminton Championships held in Colombo. At the 2010 Iran Fajr International Badminton Challenge, she won the silver medal in the singles category. Pusarla reached the quarterfinals of the 2010 BWF World Junior Championships that was held in Mexico where she lost to Chinese Suo Di in a 3-gamer.In 2011, She won Maldives International Challenge in June defeating compatriot P.C. Thulasi. She also won Indonesia International Challenge next month. She was the finalist at the Dutch Open where she lost to home player Yao Jie with scores 16–21, 17–21. Her successful run continued after she won Swiss International beating Carola Bott of Germany in the Final. She lost in second round of 2011 BWF World Junior Championships to Yuki Fukushima in a very close match 21–15, 18–21, 21–23. She won India International badminton event later in the year, defeating Sayali Gokhale.
2012
A 16-year-old Pusarla went on to compete at the All England Open Championships as a qualifier. She reached the main draw but lost to Tai Tzu-ying in 3 games. On 7 July , she won Asian Junior Championships beating Japanese Player Nozomi Okuhara in final by 18–21, 21–17, 22–20. In the Li Ning China Masters Super Series tournament she stunned London Olympics gold medallist Li Xuerui, beating her 21–19, 9–21, 21–16 and entered the semifinals. however she lost to 4th seeded Jiang Yanjiao of China by 10–21, 21–14, 19–21 in next round.Pusarla then went on to participate in the 77th Senior National Badminton Championships held at Srinagar. She was defeated in the finals by Sayali Gokhale for 15–21, 21–15, 15–21. It was later revealed that Pusarla injured her knee in the China Open and she carried this injury through the Japan Open and the nationals. She decided to skip the World Junior Championships so as not to aggravate the injury. Pusarla finished runner-up in the Syed Modi India Grand Prix Gold event held in Lucknow in December after going down to Lindaweni Fanetri in 3 games.
2013
She stunned Wang Shixian in the 2nd round of Asian Championships in tough games to reach the quarterfinal, but lost to Eriko Hirose of Japan in yet another 3 set clash. She reached her career best ranking of 15. She won Malaysian title, beating Singaporean Gu Juan, by 21–17, 17–21, 21–19. This was Pusarla's first Grand Prix Gold title. She participated in the World Championships, where she was seeded 10th in the draw. She defeated Japanese Kaori Imabeppu in 1st round in 3 games 21–19, 19–21, 21–17 & reached the 2nd round. She downed the defending champion, second-seeded Wang Yihan of China with score 21–18, 23–21 in 54 minutes, to enter the quarterfinals. She set-up a meeting with another higher seeded Chinese player, Wang Shixian & beat her 21–18, 21–17 to become India's only second medalist in the singles event at the Badminton World Championships since Prakash Padukone's Bronze medal back in 1983. She lost in the semifinal to ultimate champion Ratchanok Intanon.She was awarded the Arjun Award by Government of India.
In the Indian Badminton League, Pusarla was the captain of the team Awadhe Warriors. Her team qualified for the semifinal, where they beat Mumbai Marathas, but lost in the final to Hyderabad HotShots. She won Macau Open Grand Prix Gold title by defeating Canada's Michelle Li on 1 December . The top-seeded 18-year-old won the match 21–15, 21–12 in 37 minutes.
2014
She reached the final of India Open Grand Prix Gold but lost to her senior compatriot Saina Nehwal. She claimed her first medal at the Asian Championships after beating Busanan Ongbamrungphan in quarterfinal. Pusarla reached the semifinal stage of Commonwealth Games in the women's singles competition, which she lost to eventual gold medallist Michelle Li of Canada. She later won against Malaysian Tee Jing Yi to claim the Bronze medal.In the World Championships held in Denmark, she was seeded 11th. She powered past Russian Olga Arkhangelskaya in round 1 in 2 easy games. She had tough encounter against Bae Yeon-ju in the round of 16 where she edged a close win 19–21, 22–20, 25–23.
Pusarla later created history by becoming the first Indian to win two back-to-back medals in the BWF World Badminton Championships after her bronze medal finish last year by beating Wang Shixian in quarterfinals in three sets 19–21, 21–19, 21–15; with the match lasting more than an hour. However in semis, she lost to the eventual gold medalist, Carolina Marin, in straight sets and had to settle for bronze medal. She defended her Macau Open title by beating Kim Hyo-min of South Korea in final in year-end.
2015
She was almost on verge of victory against Li Xuerui in Asian Championships, but lost 21–11, 19–21, 8–21. At the World Championships, she defeated Line Højmark Kjærsfeldt of Denmark in 1st round after being a game down. She then stunned 3rd seeded Li Xuerui in Round of 16 and once again reached the quarterfinals of world championships. But this time she suffered defeat, against her Korean Opponent Sung Ji-hyun in a desperately close match 21–17, 19–21, 16–21.In October, playing at the Denmark Open, Pusarla reached to her maiden final of a Super Series event. On her route to the final, she defeated three seeded players, namely Tai Tzu-ying, Wang Yihan and Carolina Marin. In the final, she lost to the defending champion Li Xuerui in straight games by 19–21, 12–21. In November, defending champion Pusarla won her third successive women's singles title at the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold after defeating Japan's Minatsu Mitani in the final by 21–9, 21–23, 21–14.
2016
In January, Pusarla won the Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold women's singles title after beating Scotland's Kirsty Gilmour in the final. She had also won this tournament in 2013. She lost a close match at the Asian Championships to Tai Tzu-ying in 2nd round in which she failed to capitalise on the Match point and suffered defeat. In the Premier Badminton league, Pusarla was the captain of Chennai Smashers team. In the group league, she won all of the five matches to help her team qualify for the semifinal and won the tournament against Mumbai Rockets.
At the women's singles event, at Rio Olympics Pusarla was seeded 9th in the Draw in Group M. In the group stage, she defeated Hungary's Laura Sárosi (2–0) and Canada's Michelle Li (2–1). Further she ousted Tai Tzu-ying (2–0) in the round of 16 to meet the second seeded Wang Yihan in the quarterfinals, whom she defeated in straight sets. Pusarla later faced the Japanese star Nozomi Okuhara in the semifinals, won in straight sets, and ensuring a podium finish. This set the stage for her final showdown with top seed from Spain, Carolina Marín. Marin managed to beat Pusarla in three sets in the 83-minute match. With that result, Pusarla clinched the silver medal. She charted history of achieving the feat as she is youngest and first female individual to bag an Olympic Silver medal representing India. This was the second instance of podium finish at the Olympics by any Indian badminton player.She clinched title at the Thaihot China Open beating Sun Yu scoring 21–11, 17–21, 21–11 & became only Indian player after Saina Nehwal to do so. She was also a finalist at the Hongkong Open after going down to Tai Tzu-ying in straight games. With her consistent performances, she qualified for Superseries Finals. She defeated Akane Yamaguchi (2–1), lost to Sun Yu (0–2) and won against Carolina Marín (2–0) in the Group stage. With 2 wins in the group, she reached semifinals. She was stopped there in semis by Sung Ji-hyun with score 15–21, 21–18, 15–21. In her only first ever appearance in this tournament, she managed to reach semifinal stage.
2017
She won Syed Modi International by beating Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia in Final. In the India Open Superseries, Pusarla won the title by defeating Carolina Marin in straight games. In April , she achieved a career-high world ranking of number 2. In the World Championships held in Scotland, Pusarla was seeded 4th. In the round of 32, she defeated Korean Kim Hyo-min in straight games. She survived a difficult challenge from Hongkonger Cheung Ngan Yi in next round, beating her in 3 tight games 19–21, 23–21, 21–17. She thereafter eased past Sun Yu in quarterfinal & another Chinese Chen Yufei in semifinal both in straight games. She had to settle for silver after
losing to Nozomi Okuhara in the finals with scores (19–21, 22–20, 20–22), In a match lasting 110 Minutes thus making it the 2nd longest Women's Singles match in History of Badminton. Her final against Okuhara is widely regarded as one the best ever women's singles final.Pusarla defeated Okuhara in the final of the Korea Open Super Series by 22–20, 11–21, 21–18, thereby becoming the first Indian to win Korea Open. In August, she took charges as Deputy Collector in Krishna District in the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration (CCLA) office under the Revenue Department of the Government of Andhra Pradesh. She set up a repeat clash of last year's final in the Hongkong Open, which she again lost to Tai Tzu-ying in straight games. In the Group stage of Dubai World Superseries Finals, she won all of her matches against He Bingjiao (2–1), Sayaka Sato (2–0) & Akane Yamaguchi (2–0). She put her good show against Chen Yufei (2–0) & reached the final. She had another runner-up finish after being defeated by Japan's Akane Yamaguchi 21–15, 12–21, 19–21 in 94 minutes.
2018
Pusarla faltered in the final again, this time at her home event, the India Open, where she had Match point in the 3rd game but couldn't convert it and Lost the match to Zhang Beiwen. At the All England Open Championships, Pusarla made it to the top 4, before losing to world number 3 Akane Yamaguchi in the semifinal with the score 21–19, 19–21, 18–21. This is Pusarla's best performance at the All England Open. Pusarla competed at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, winning a Gold in the mixed team event and silver medal in the singles event. Her Jinx of losing in finals continued after she went down to Nozomi Okuhara in the final of Thailand Open.Pusarla was seeded 3rd in the BWF World Championships. She won her opening encounters against Fitriani & Sung Ji-hyun both in straight games. She then faced defending champion Nozomi Okuhara, whom she also defeated with 21–17, 21–19. In the semifinals, she defeated 2nd seeded Akane Yamaguchi also in 2 games 21–16, 24–22. She won her second consecutive silver medal after losing to Carolina Marín in finals 19–21, 10–21. This was her total fourth medal at the Worlds.Pusarla was seeded 3rd in the Asian Games. In the first round, she defeated Vietnamese Vu Thi Trang in 3 games 21–10, 12–21, 23–21 in a very difficult encounter. She then faced Gregoria Mariska Tunjung and beat her with 21–12, 21–15 scoreline. She had to again battle to get past Thai Nitchaon Jindapol in quarterfinal. She then Akane Yamaguchi in semifinal to enter the final round. By losing to world number one Tai Tzu-Ying in the final, she got the historic first silver medal for India in Women's singles badminton.Pusarla qualified for the BWF World Tour Finals in the year-end. In the group stage, she defeated defending champion Akane Yamaguchi (2–0), Top seed Tai Tzu Ying (2–1) & In her third match, she defeated Zhang Beiwen comfortably in two games to progress to the semi-finals. In the semi-final she defeated Ratchanok Intanon (2–0) to reach the final. She defeated her arch-rival Nozomi Okuhara scoring 21–19, 21–17 & became only shuttler from India to claim the Title at the year-end finale.
2019
Pusarla was brought by the defending champions Hyderabad Hunters in the PBL auctions 2018 and was named as their skipper. They lost the semifinals to Mumbai Rockets. Pusarla competed at the Indian National Badminton Championships where she reached the final losing to three-time champion Saina Nehwal 18–21, 15–21. Just before the All England Badminton Championships she had ended her deal with Yonex and signed a mega deal with Li-Ning for 4 years worth nearly ₹500 million (US$7.0 million). This led to her having a new racket and equipment to which she had to get used to within 2–3 weeks time to debut it at the prestigious All England Badminton Championships. She reached her first final of the season in the Indonesia Open, where she lost to Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 15–21, 16–21.At the World Championships, she was seeded fifth. She opened her campaign with a straight sets victories over Pai Yu-po & Zhang Beiwen in successive rounds. She impressed everyone with her victory over Tai Tzu-ying. She defeated Tai, coming from a game down 12–21, 23–21, 21–19 to make the semi-final. In the semi-final, she defeated Chen Yufei in straight sets to enter her third consecutive World Championships final. In the final against Nozomi Okuhara, she won 21–7, 21–7. In the process, she became the first Indian to win gold at the championships.Despite her ranking as 15th on the World Tour, she got a wild card entry into the BWF World Tour Finals because of her World Title victory in August this Year.
She competed in World Tour Finals in Guangzhou as a defending champion but failed to reach knockout Phase after losing out to Chen Yufei (1–2) & Akane Yamaguchi (1–2) in successive rounds. She finished off as 3rd in group after defeating He Bingjiao with score 21–19, 21–19 in her last match.
2020
Pusarla was named the BBC Indian Sportswoman of Year on 8 March . In April, she was elected as one of the ambassadors of BWF Committee's campaign – "I am Badminton" to promote clean and fair play in the sport.
Endorsements
An Economic Times report published in March 2017, said that she is second only to Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli when it comes to earnings from brand endorsements. Pusarla charges brands anywhere between ₹10 million (US$140,000) and ₹12.5 million (US$180,000) for a single day of endorsement-related activities.Pusarla has endorsement deals with JBL, Bridgestone Tyres, sports drink Gatorade, pain reliever ointment Moov, online fashion store Myntra, e-commerce portal Flipkart, phone maker Nokia and electronics major Panasonic. She also endorses Stayfree, health drink Boost, honey producer APIS Himalaya, herbal health drink firm Ojasvita and the Bank of Baroda. She is also a brand ambassador for both the Central Reserve Police Force and Vizag Steel.In February 2019, it was announced that Pusarla had signed a four-year sports sponsorship deal for ₹500 million (US$7.0 million) with Chinese sports brand Li Ning. Pusarla's deal is one of the biggest in world badminton. Pusarla reportedly will get ₹400 million (US$5.6 million) as sponsorship while the rest of the money will be for equipment. This was Li-Ning's second stint with Pusarla, who was with them for two years in 2014-2015 for a sum of ₹12.5 million (US$180,000) a year. In 2016, Pusarla was back with Yonex for a ₹35 million (US$490,000) per year contract for a period of three years.
Career overview
Singles
Played
Wins
Losses
Balance
Total*
454
321
133
+188
Current year (2019)*
41
28
13
+15
Doubles
Played
Wins
Losses
Balance
Total*
20
10
10
0
Current year (2019)*
0
0
0
0
* Statistics were last updated on 19 December 2017.
Singles performance timeline
Tournament
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
SR
Best
BWF events
BWF World Junior Championships
2R
QF
3R
A
N/A
0/3
QF ('10)
BWF World Championships
A
NH
B
B
QF
NH
S
S
G
1/6
G ('19)
Olympics
NH
DNQ
NH
S
NH
0/1
S ('16)
BWF Super Series
BWF World Tour
All England Open
A
1R
2R
1R
A
1R
QF
SF
1R
0/7
SF ('18)
India Open
N/A
1R
QF
SF
1R
A
QF
W
F
SF
1/8
W ('17)
Malaysia Open
A
Q1
1R
2R
A
QF
1R
SF
R2
0/7
SF ('18)
Singapore Open
A
1R
A
QF
A
2R
QF
N.P
SF
0/5
SF ('19)
Indonesia Open
A
2R
A
1R
1R
A
2R
QF
F
0/6
F ('19)
Australian Open
N/A
QF
1R
1R
QF
N.P
2R
0/5
QF ('14, '17)
Japan Open
A
2R
2R
A
1R
A
2R
2R
QF
0/6
QF ('19)
China Open
A
Q2
1R
A
2R
W
QF
QF
2R
1/7
W ('16)
Korea Open
A
Q2
2R
A
2R
A
W
N.P
1R
1/5
W ('17)
Denmark Open
A
1R
QF
F
2R
1R
1R
2R
0/7
F ('15)
French Open
A
2R
1R
1R
2R
SF
QF
QF
0/7
SF ('17)
Fuzhou China Open
A
SF
A
N/A
QF
1R
0/3
SF ('12)
Hong Kong Open
A
Q2
1R
1R
2R
1R
F
F
2R
2R
0/9
F ('16,'17)
BWF World Tour Finals
DNQ
SF
F
W
P
0/3
W ('18)
BWF Grand Prix Gold and Grand Prix
Malaysia Masters
A
SF
W
A
SF
W
A
w/d
A
2/4
W ('13, '16)
Syed Modi International
QF
SF
2R
F
NH
F
SF
2R
W
w/d
1/8
W ('17)
German Open
A
1R
A
QF
A
A
0/2
QF ('16)
Swiss Open
N/A
A
1R
2R
SF
A
QF
A
0/4
SF ('14)
China Masters
N/A
A
QF
A
N/A
0/1
QF ('16)
Chinese Taipei Open
A
2R
A
0/1
2R ('15)
Vietnam Open
A
QF
A
0/1
QF ('11)
Indonesian Masters
A
QF
A
N/A
QF
QF
0/3
QF ('15, '18, '19)
Thailand Open
A
2R
A
F
w/d
0/2
F ('18)
Dutch Open
A
F
A
0/1
F ('11)
Macau Open
A
W
W
W
A
3/3
W ('13, '14, '15)
India Open
Q2
2R
N/A
0/2
2R ('10)
Year-end Ranking
255
151
31
19
11
11
12
6
3
3
Career overview
Singles
Played
Wins
Losses
Balance
Total
468
328
140
+188
Current year (2020)
8
5
3
+2
Doubles
Played
Wins
Losses
Balance
Total
20
10
10
0
Current year (2020)
0
0
0
0
* Statistics were last updated on 17 March 2020.
Singles performance timeline
Tournament
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
SR
Best
BWF events
BWF World Junior Championships
2R
QF
3R
A
N/A
0/3
QF ('10)
BWF World Championships
A
NH
B
B
QF
NH
S
S
G
NH
1/6
G ('19)
Olympics
NH
DNQ
NH
S
NH
0/1
S ('16)
BWF Super Series
BWF World Tour
All England Open
A
1R
2R
1R
A
1R
QF
SF
1R
QF
0/8
SF ('18)
India Open
N/A
1R
QF
SF
1R
A
QF
W
F
SF
Q
1/8
W ('17)
Malaysia Open
A
Q1
1R
2R
A
QF
1R
SF
R2
Q
0/7
SF ('18)
Singapore Open
A
1R
A
QF
A
2R
QF
N.P
SF
0/5
SF ('19)
Indonesia Open
A
2R
A
1R
1R
A
2R
QF
F
0/6
F ('19)
Australian Open
N/A
QF
1R
1R
QF
N.P
2R
0/5
QF ('14, '17)
Japan Open
A
2R
2R
A
1R
A
2R
2R
QF
0/6
QF ('19)
China Open
A
Q2
1R
A
2R
W
QF
QF
2R
1/7
W ('16)
Korea Open
A
Q2
2R
A
2R
A
W
N.P
1R
1/5
W ('17)
Denmark Open
A
1R
QF
F
2R
1R
1R
2R
0/7
F ('15)
French Open
A
2R
1R
1R
2R
SF
QF
QF
0/7
SF ('17)
Fuzhou China Open
A
SF
A
N/A
QF
1R
0/3
SF ('12)
Hong Kong Open
A
Q2
1R
1R
2R
1R
F
F
2R
2R
0/9
F ('16,'17)
BWF World Tour Finals
DNQ
SF
F
W
GS
1/4
W ('18)
BWF Grand Prix Gold and Grand Prix
BWF World Tour
Malaysia Masters
A
SF
W
A
SF
W
A
w/d
A
QF
2/5
W ('13, '16)
Indonesia Masters
A
QF
A
N/A
QF
QF
2R
0/4
QF ('15, '18, '19)
German Open
A
1R
A
QF
A
A
0/2
QF ('16)
Swiss Open
N/A
A
1R
2R
SF
A
QF
A
0/4
SF ('14)
Syed Modi International
QF
SF
2R
F
NH
F
SF
2R
W
w/d
A
1/8
W ('17)
China Masters
N/A
A
QF
A
N/A
0/1
QF ('16)
Chinese Taipei Open
A
2R
A
0/1
2R ('15)
Vietnam Open
A
QF
A
0/1
QF ('11)
Thailand Open
A
2R
A
F
w/d
0/2
F ('18)
Dutch Open
A
F
A
0/1
F ('11)
Macau Open
A
W
W
W
A
3/3
W ('13, '14, '15)
India Open
Q2
2R
N/A
0/2
2R ('10)
Year-end Ranking
255
151
31
19
11
11
12
6
3
3
6
Personal life
P. V. Sindhu has been employed with Bharat Petroleum since July 2013, as an assistant sports manager with their Hyderabad office. Following her silver-medal win at the Rio Olympics, she was promoted to deputy sports manager. She was appointed as first brand ambassador of Bridgestone India.
She was also appointed as the Deputy Collector (Group-I) by the Andhra Pradesh government.
She was the flag bearer for the Indian contingent in the opening ceremony of the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
2016 Summer Olympics
See also: Badminton at the – Women's singles
Stage
Opponent
Result
Games
Points
Group stage (Round 1)
Laura Sárosi (HUN)
Won
2–0
21–8, 21–9
Group stage (Round 3)
Michelle Li (CAN)
Won
2–1
19–21, 21–15, 21–17
Pre-Quarterfinals
Tai Tzu-ying (TPE)
Won
2–0
21–13, 21–15
Quarterfinals
Wang Yihan (CHN)
Won
2–0
22–20, 21–19
Semifinals
Nozomi Okuhara (JPN)
Won
2–0
21–19, 21–10
Final
Carolina Marín (ESP)
Lost
1–2
21–19, 12–21, 15–21
Personal life
Pusarla has been employed with Bharat Petroleum since July 2013, as an assistant sports manager with their Hyderabad office. Following her silver-medal win at the Rio Olympics, she was promoted to deputy sports manager. She was appointed as first brand ambassador of Bridgestone India.
She was also appointed as the Deputy Collector (Group-I) by the Andhra Pradesh government.
She was the flag bearer for the Indian contingent in the opening ceremony of the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Carolina Marin
Silver
